


Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation

by LuckyLuCheng



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Battle, Betrayal, Blood and Gore, Daddy Issues, Death, Depression, Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fighting, Issues, Mommy Issues, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), POV First Person, POV Original Character, Pain, Relationship Problems, Romance, Weapons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-07
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-06 15:19:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 28,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15197582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyLuCheng/pseuds/LuckyLuCheng
Summary: "The witch with the power of creation; Shall use the power to bring cessation; One to live, one to die; One to find that it was a lie; Found deep within the endless maze; The spark of life will cease to blaze; The man of clay will go back to dust; The winged one, not to trust; Teeth and magic will destroy; Together they must stop the ploy". This was the prophecy Bartholomew Cooperman received after his life did a complete one-eighty. After suffering the loss of his father, Bartholomew learned that he was the only child of Trivia at Camp Jupiter and he must now go on a quest to recover the Grimoire of Creation. Joining with him is the mysterious camper, Katya Ivanov, the young demigod that his mother revealed to him. Following along as the two campers go through a hellish world full of monsters that want them dead in order to recover a Grimoire that can create whatever the bearer desires.Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation takes place in a slightly darker version of the PJ universe that makes it feel like it's dangerous to be a demigod. It follows a few original characters on an original quest with a few classic characters showing. There are graphic depictions of death and trauma, you are warned!





	1. I Get Choked Out By My History Teacher

Howdy! LuckyLu here, better known as LuLuCheng on other parts of the internet, here to bring you my fresh take on the Percy Jackson universe. My plan is to release each chapter on a weekly basis until its conclusion if it gets enough positive reviews then I'll consider a sequel and release that as well! The main idea behind this that I wanted a story that gave the spotlight to the Roman side of things. Furthermore, I wanted to see what it'd be like to be the children of minor gods as we mostly focus on the bigger, more popular Gods that fill the PJ universe. It will have a blend of new characters and old ones and how the two camps function after the events of HoO and ToA. I'll try to make it as interesting and fun as possible, but I'm warning you now that there is going to be heavy gore, death, and some possible light romance if I decide to take it in that direction. Lastly, I'll have to ask you to forgive any grammar and spelling mistakes as I suffer from dyslexia and still miss things even after multiple read-overs. Other than that, I hope you enjoy Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation!

 

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Chapter I

 

I Get Choked Out By my Tenth Grade History Teacher

 

**BARTHOLOMEW**

 

Last night, my nightmares were the most vivid it had ever been. So vivid in fact that I believed that I was back there, experiencing it all over again. It had only been a few weeks since it happened, but it still felt as if it happened yesterday. I don't quite understand how I knew it would happen, I tried to ignore the tingling sensation in the back of my neck to no avail. It started as soon as I woke up that day for school, a heavy sensation of dread held tightly in my stomach. In my young mind, I couldn't even fathom that someone could do that, much less to children. Other than that, it had started as a normal day, my father, who decided to come home for the first time in a long while, suggested that I stay home that day if I was so worried, but he knew I would never take him up on that offer. What can I say, was I weird kid for not wanting to spend the day with a father that looked like he was two heartbeats away from death? I greeted my teacher, Mrs. Smith, as I did every morning, and as usual, she ignored me. I couldn't quite grasp why she felt it was necessary to single me out, but no matter how much ruckus my father made, the school refused to do anything about it, they even had the audacity to claim that a teacher of that name wasn't even on campus. The day progressed normally until lunch, Mrs. Smith sat casually at her desk filing at her spikey nails, her face looking as if she just ate a particularly sour lemon. I sat quietly at my desk and munched slowly on my PB&J sandwich, which per school rules, lacked both peanut butter and jelly and was instead filled with a peanut butter alternative. That's when I felt the tingling get even worse, deep down I knew something bad was going to happen, and that it was going to happen soon.

Then I felt it, a sudden wave of heat had pushed its way into the classroom. The other kids looked uncomfortable but didn't say anything for fear of inciting the wrath of our 10th-grade history teacher. Then it happened, Mrs. Smith's usual grimace had turned into a tight smile, revealing a set of perfect teeth. She gingerly placed her file on her desk and shot out of her chair, causing it to hit the wall with a loud thunk! Her voice broke the silence that permeated the room, it was soft and sweet, the kind of voice that could make you do anything, no matter how unrealistic.

"Alright, Children!" She said, her voice pulling the attention of everyone in the room "I just received word that we're all going on a special field trip!"

The whole class erupted in chatter, A field trip? I thought, why would we go on a field trip in the middle of lunch? I spent the next few seconds raking my mind trying to figure out what kind of trip we'd be going on before her voice pulled my attention back.

"This is a special trip, a once in a lifetime event!" Mrs. Smith chuckled to herself as if she had just made a funny joke only she was aware of, "But before we leave, can anyone tell me what natural gas smells like?"

The students around me looked at her in confusion, oblivious to the events that were about to unfold. My whole body was tingling at this point, it was as if I was vibrating in alarm, screaming at myself to run as far as I can, and now I wish I had listened. I knew deep down that something wasn't right, so I did something I was told to never do. I slowly reached down into my bag and felt around before my hand caught on the item I was searching for. I gripped it tightly and withdrew an eye shaped pendant suspended on a thin gold chain. It was rather heavy, so I usually kept it tucked away in my bag, my father had told me to always keep it near me as it was a gift from my mom. I didn't quite understand why my mom would have something like this, it was rather strange truth be told. Faceted in the middle was a beautiful sapphire that shimmered elegantly which gave off the illusion of an eyeball, on the left side of the sapphire sat a burning torch, flanking the torch on the right side was a key. I wasn't sure why my father placed so much importance on it until I figured out what it let me do.

I was heavily picked on as a kid, I guess I was just an easy target and it was only made worse when they saw me wearing the necklace. Thompson, the schoolyard bully, had seen the necklace under my shirt and demanded that I give it to him. I guess his bird brain saw something shiny and just had to have it. I shakily told him, no and before I knew it I was surrounded by his lackeys. The next thing I knew I was on the ground getting beaten while I was curled up trying to protect my head. Then I felt the necklace get warm and before I knew it every single sprinkler head had burst, causing an ocean of stagnant water to wash over my attackers. Of course, I was blamed for the incident, but it was written off as a hardware failure since then I had been ostracized and bullied by most of my peers. Rumors quickly started popping up about how I was some sort of Satanist who had sold his soul. The school didn't do much about it, it was like I didn't exist to them.

After that event I began to practice with the necklace, at first, I was only able to cause small objects to combust, like pebbles and such. Then I realized the full scope of the necklaces power, slowly I began to be able to move stuff by thinking about it, summoning small flames in my hands. As a child I could only rationalize it as magic, I became enamored by the necklace and the power it granted me. Not long after, I learned that using the necklace came with a price, I had just got done using magic to clean the house and I felt blood drip down my nose and I felt the world spin around me. I woke up several hours later in a pool of my own vomit, I felt as if I had just gotten kicked in the head by a horse. My father was furious, and for once it felt like he actually cared about me in some twisted way. I couldn't care much though as he wasn't home very often, only popping in every once and awhile to make sure I was still alive. Other times he'd pop by to teach me how to use weapons or hand to hand combat. I'd always complain and ask him why he'd do these kinds of things and every time the answer would be the same.

"I'm teaching you how to survive" He'd say in his deep, thunderous voice, "It might not make sense now, but it'll mean the difference between death and a second chance when you're older"

As you might be able to guess, we didn't get along all that well. When he was home I'd typically spend my time locked up in my room while he tinkered away in his workshop. The only time I saw him seem visibly worried about me was when I called him to let him know that some strange looking people were loitering around our house. A few hours later he was crashing through the door screaming my name as if he expected me to be dead on the floor with my guts strewn about. Then, in classic fashion, he'd Houdini himself out of my life. After he found out what I could do with the necklace he became even more distant, popping by maybe once or twice a month and only to make sure that I hadn't used the necklace since. He'd always tell me he'd teach me how to use it when I was older, but I guess I should've known that wasn't going to happen when he suddenly showed up and stayed longer than a night.

I wrapped my hand tightly around the necklace, the familiar warmth seeping into my hand. Mrs. Smith was now tapping slightly on the wall, seemingly looking for something. It was several seconds before she seemingly found what she was looking for, and to the shock of the other children in the class, Mrs. Smith shoved her nails into the brick, cutting it like butter. She made quick work of the mortar that held the brick in place and slowly slid it out, revealing a slim, vertical, copper pipe in the depths of the wall. Her smile grew even larger as she turned to the class.

"Now children, when the teacher asks a question it's only right that you answer it!" Again, my classmates looked on in confusion as they waited for Mrs. Smith to answer her own question. Her smile dipped in a temporary frown but was quickly replaced with a new smile.

"No matter, we can't expect you all to be winners!" She slid her nail deep into the pipe, causing natural gas to seep into the room with a soft hiss.

Gas quickly filled the room, it's noxious smell began to burn my nostrils. The kids around me began to fidget, some even trying to stifle tears. My mind went into overdrive, why was she doing this? I thought to myself, even then I couldn't fathom what my life was going to become. Mrs. Smith turned to face the class, her mouth contorted into a wicked grin like a maniac.

"What's wrong kids, cat got your tongue?" Mrs. Smith said mockingly, "You humans are all the same, weak-willed and weak-minded!"

We humans? My mind was going a million miles a minute, analyzing Mrs. Smith's every move, was my father, right? Did monsters truly exist? I always thought it was just the ramblings a drunken old man trying to rationalize the evils in the world. He always told me to be on the look-out for people out of the ordinary, people who didn't act quite human. I watched in silent horror, my fingers trembling around the warm pendant as Mrs. Smith approached a meek girl sitting next to me. I didn't know her personally, to be honest not many people gave me much thought. I guess I just had one of those faces, the one that makes people automatically think I'm a thug looking for trouble. I've been told many times that I had a rather weasel-y face, whatever that meant. It wasn't helped by the fact that the rumors of the sprinkler incident followed me all the way to high school. I watched with baited breath as Mrs. Smith extended her long, claw-like finger and looped a piece of the girl's brunette hair around it.

"Now, Katie, can you tell me what you think is happening?" Mrs. Smith said, "And be honest”

"I don't know," Katie said, her voice quiet and weak, "Why are you doing this?"

Mrs. Smith, who seemed unsatisfied with this answer, grabbed a chunk of Katie's hair and lifted her out of the desk. That's when the buzzing forced me into action, I didn't know what was happening but I knew I couldn't sit idly by while this mad woman attacked one of her students. The pendant was practically burning into my skin at this point. I managed to gain control of my legs and hoisted myself out of the seat.

"Put her down!" I said, my voice weak and trembling

"Oh!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed, surprised by my sudden bravery, "And I suppose the big hero is going to stop me? Look around mortal, do you see any imperial gold or celestial bronze around here, there's nothing you can do to me!"

"Mortal? Gold and Bronze?!" I practically screamed, my fear began to get the better of me, "You're just as human as I am, and no special gold is going to stop me from stopping this!"

"Such a loud thing, just sit down, you're beginning to make me very upset," Mrs. Smith said with a fake pout before turning her attention back to Katie, "You don't smell like a demigod, none of you do! Why was I sent here if none of you have a drop of godly blood in you!"

Mrs. Smith, in a fit of rage, slammed Katie on the floor, the sound of her body cracking on the floor and Katie's subsequent screech of pain etched itself into my mind forever. Kids shrieked in terror as Katie remained unmoving, blood spilling out of her ears and nose. I knew I was in trouble when Mrs. Smith turned her gaze to me. I backed away as far as I could before I hit the side of my desk. Mrs. Smith loomed over me, I could feel my heart pounding away in my chest, my body seemingly trying to let instinct take over. I stood paralyzed in fear as she slowly wrapped her fingers around my neck, instantly I could feel my life slipping away. I couldn't believe that this is how I was going to go out, being choked by a teacher. Deep down I could feel anger boiling deep inside me, anger that I tried every day to keep down. I could feel it spilling over, thoughts raced through my head as I took my final breaths. It was funny in a way, my last moments being consumed with wrath and anger. Anger at my mother for leaving me alone despite all the excuses my dad made for her. Anger at those who judged me just because of how I looked. Anger that I couldn't do anything about it, even with the pendant. I felt my eyes getting heavy, all I wanted to do was give up and sleep, to let go of life. I could feel my body slowly shutting down, then I felt this warmth spread through me, giving me life. Breathing became easier and I could her grip loosening, my eyes fluttered open and saw a look of happiness spread over Mrs. Smith's face.

"So, it's you!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed in excitement before her face shifted to that of confusion, "But why don't you have a scent?"

"What are you talking about you absolute psychopath!" I stammered, trying to balance on my wobbling legs

Mrs. Smith ignored my statement, she turned and observed the room, all the kids were paralyzed in terror.

"Congratulations children!" She squealed "I found the one I was looking for, that means I can safely kill all of you now! If anybody in the Underworld asks how you died, be sure to tell them you went out with a bang!"

Time slowed down around me, I could see Mrs. Smith begin to snap her fingers. It was as if they were made of matches because small sparks began to shoot out as her fingertips rubbed together. Then I realized what she was going to do, I barely had time to react. Within milliseconds the sparks ignited the natural gas that filled the room. I watched in morbid amusement as the flame slowly began to consume the room, seemingly floating through the air. Then I felt it, it was like someone set off several thousand tons of TNT, I was flung backward and catapulted out of the classroom and onto the hard pavement outside. I felt the air get knocked out me, I laid on the concrete, gasping like a fish on dry land as the sound of sirens slowly approached the school. All around me were the charred remains of my classmates, I could feel tears begin to break through my eyes as my new reality dawned on me. I knew I couldn't stay, there would be too many questions that I couldn't answer, I knew I had to get home.

I forced myself to crawl to the edge of the woods, forcing my eyes closed so I didn't vomit every time I'd accidentally touch bits and pieces of my classmates. My body groaned in pain as I slowly made my way to the edge of the woods. Eventually, my breathing steadied out and I could stand, not soon after I broke through the edge of the woods and made my way back to my house. It was a rather shabby, hidden deep within the woods with odd carvings etched deep within the trees that made up the interior of the grove that my house sat in. I struggled up the porch stairs and stumbled through the door, surprised by the sight of my father who has been absent for two months.

"Barry!" He said, practically jumping out of his skin, "What are you doing here? What happened to you?"

I limped into the living room and collapsed onto the musty chair, freely crying now, the salty tears burning as they slid down my face

"They're all dead," I said, barely able to process it

"Barry, what happened" My father knelt in front of me, his unusually caring eyes seemed to betray his rather deathly look.

My father was an odd person, to say the least. He was tall and looked like a mix between an angry lumberjack and a mortician. Pale skin highlighted the deep bags under his eyes, it seemed that he had trouble sleeping. When he was home he'd spend his time locked up in his workshop, a place that I was forbidden to enter. I caught a glimpse inside once as a young child and was amazed to see an assortment of various weapons and armor lining the walls. But they weren't just any ordinary weapons or armor, they seemed to radiate this odd power that attracted me. My father was very closed off about his life, rarely talking about his past and even more closed off about the various scars and tattoos he sported. Often, I'd catch him staring off with a mile-long stare, as if he was silently mourning the loss of something. I could never quite understand him truth be told, I've had to move more times than I could count because I offhandedly mentioned the strange behavior of a friend or a crazy neighbor, luckily life had remained pretty normal for the last couple of years and I was able to stay at the same school district.

I struggled as I recounted what happened, a deep sorrow seemed to grip him as I talked about the gory details.

"All those innocent people, just for a young boy" I heard him say quietly, "Barry, I know this is going to be hard, and it's going to sound crazy, but I need you to listen"

My father's voice was seized with panic, I could barely focus on it. It felt as if the whole world was spinning around me. With a few soft taps to the face, my father brought me back to reality.

"Barry, please this is serious. I need you to focus and I need you to pay attention to what I'm telling you" He gripped me tightly, forcing me to put all my attention on him, his deep amber eyes meeting my own.

"Dad, I don't understand, what's happening?" I could feel the anger building up again, I knew how this was going to play out already. He was going to give me a bunch of vague instructions and keep me in the dark.

"Go to the workshop, the panel in the wardrobe is fake, pull it out and there should be a backpack in it. Get that backpack and run as fast as you can out the back door. Don't stop running until Lupa comes for you, she'll help you" He began to cautiously peak outside the window, as if he was expected someone to show up on our doorstep, "Barry, I know we've never seen eye to eye and I'm sorry I can't explain further, but I made a promise to your mother that I can never break"

That did it, that set me over the edge, I couldn't believe that even now he was keeping secrets from me, much less using my mom as an excuse. Anger flared up inside of me, of all the times that he could've talked about her, of all the chances I gave him, he decides to do it now? Not only does he run off for months at a time doing god knows what, now he won't even give me the time of day to talk to me when something this bad happens? I couldn't take it anymore, I shot up out of the chair, anger burning deep within my eyes.

"Really?" I yelled, "That's it?"

"Barry, please we don't have time for this" I could hear exhaustion creeping into his voice, "Just do what I told you to"

"I dragged myself out of the woods, burnt and bloodied, and you didn't even ask me if I was ok" My voice wavered as I vented my frustration, "Do I even matter to you, or am I some nuisance that my mother dropped on you?"

Sadness consumed my father's face, if I didn't know any better I would've said that he was close to tears. My father suppressed his showing feelings, but when he spoke his voice betrayed him.

"Barry, I don't ever want you to think you were anything less than my pride and joy, that's why I trust Lupa to come for you. You won't understand this now but your bloodline is strong, I know you'll be safe at camp. But for now, I need you to go, whatever happened was a sign that I can no longer protect you" His voice sounded worried, he pulled me in a tight hug but I was far too upset to reciprocate

"Protect me!" I yelled, pushing him away, "So that's what you were doing huh? Protecting me from the monsters that creep in the night when you're out on your little escapades?"

"Barry, it's not like that!" His voice was small and defeated, "I'm just trying to do the best I can. Please, Barry, I don't want anything to happen to you and the only way I can guarantee that is if you follow my instructions."

"There you go again!" I said, pushing him away, "You won't tell me what's going on, you sit there and bark orders at me and yet you won't give me the time of day to explain things"

Then I felt it, the harsh sting of reality as my father's palm collided with my face. It was the first and last time my father laid a hand on me, and with that gesture, I understood the gravity of that situation.

"That's enough, Barry" My father growled, his demeanor shifting from the worried father to that of a warrior, "Either you do what I say or we both die here tonight"

My head was spinning, what does he mean by "we both die here tonight"? I wondered to myself. My head was swimming as my body went into autopilot and in a daze, I shuffled to the hallway. My eyes shifted to the heavy oak door that blocked of my father's workshop from the rest of the house. For the first time, I noticed how the doorknob seemed to emanate a soft golden glow. I wrapped my fingers around the doorknob, and to my astonishment, the doorknob seemed to radiate the same warmth the pendant does. The door shifted open with a series of clicks and grinding and opened into a large room lined with vast amounts of weapons and armor. Roman swords and spears sat in various containers along the wall. Sitting on various shelves and tables laid different types of armor in differing states of disrepair.

"What the?" I whispered to myself, my voice seemingly bouncing around the room

I knew my father was obsessed with this kind of stuff, but I didn't know that my father had this stuff squirreled away. My dazed mind swarmed with memories of my childhood when my father would spend his scarce time home reading me various stories of great Roman heroes, speaking as if he knew a few of them personally. My mind came back to reality as my eyes locked onto an oddly placed wardrobe in the corner of the room. It was nothing special, except for the fact that it seemingly lacked any way to open it. I placed my hand on the front of it, and as if it recognized me it let out a loud shudder before a soft click popped the doors open. The contents were strange as well, various colored togas sat inside of the wardrobe, the white one seemingly more worn than the others. I pushed past the old, musky togas and pushed the false panel out the of the way. Sitting behind the wardrobe was a small hook holding up a seemingly normal bookbag, one that you'd probably see a hiker with. I removed it from the hook and slung it over my shoulder, it was going to be hard leaving this place but I didn't have time to think about that. That's when I heard it, the shrill voice of Mrs. Smith echo from outside, why was she here?

"Oh, itty bitty Barry, you know it's illegal to flee the scene of a crime" Her voice was full of sadistic pleasure, "Especially when a troubled kid like yourself set a fire next to a propane tank, what were you thinking?

My heart sped up again, why was she here? Did she chase me? I darted back out in the living room, my father standing ready and alert by the door. He looked me up and down, obviously saddened by what had to happen next. I looked him in his eyes one last time, unable to form the courage to apologize before I knew it I was heading for the back door. The sun burned brightly in the crisp autumn sky, I trekked off into the forest knowing that this would be the last time seeing this home for a while. I turned back to gaze at it one last time, taking in the peeling paint job that wrapped the exterior, the harsh metal roofing that would shudder during a serious rain storm. I tried to think about the experiences I had in that house, the times spent alone while my father was off somewhere. The times I've had to hide under the stairs with a Mossberg 500 because someone was trying to get into the house. Even to the time when I almost set it on fire because I forgot to put water in my ramen cup, I can still remember the feeling of panic I had when I saw the black smoke billowing from the ancient microwave. I was forced back into reality after I saw Mrs. Smith crest the side of the house, but instead of the small, petit teacher, a towering monster now stood in her place. Her normal flame red hair now replaced with genuine fire that reached towards the heavens in a flickering inferno. The leg that I thought to be a prosthetic was now replaced fully with one made of copper. Beside the leg of copper stood a leg made of shaggy fur capped with a cloven hoof.

Mrs. Smith's eyes locked onto mine, a wicked grin spread across her face, her usual white teeth now replaced with bloodied fangs. I gazed at her in horror, my body unable to move, I realized that all those times I called her a monster were true and not a manifestation of my frustration.

"Enough of these silly games little brother, there's someone very important who wants to see you, and I can't say I'm one to disappoint!" Mrs. Smith slowly approached, her copper leg leaving a heavy print in the soft dirt as she approached him.

Little brother? I thought, there's no way I could be related to something like her! My legs reacted before my head did, and before I knew it I was heading headlong into the deepest parts of the forest. I felt the scratches of thorns sting on my skin, the smacking of branches on my body as I plowed through them. None of that mattered to me, I knew that I had to keep going, faster and faster, I couldn't afford to stop. I saw the land around me change, from deep forests to water, from water lush green fields, from fields to cities and deserts. I didn't stop until my legs gave out and I tumbled hard on the ground. I could feel my blood flowing freely from every orifice on my face, had I used magic to get away from Mrs. Smith? I thought, trying to make sense of the new location. As I slowly drifted out of consciousness my eyes caught a glimpse of a road sign and on it, in bold white font read "Welcome to California!". My head began to throb, how did I get to California from Michigan so quickly? My question had to wait as I slowly drifted in and out of consciousness, the last thing I heard before I lost consciousness was the ominous howl of a wolf in the distance.

 


	2. To Bash or Smash Is a Hard Choice

Alright, I'm going to come out and say it. This chapter starts a bit slow and it mostly serves to introduce you to Katya, the deuteragonist of the series and how Camp Jupiter has changed since the events of Heroes of Olympus. Furthermore, I'd like to take a moment and explain that Katya speaks in broken English as she's only been learning it for a few weeks. I debated whether or not to write her lines in broken English, but decided that it would be too confusing and not in the best interest of you, the reader. Next, I'd like to mention that Bartholomew Cooperman and Grimoire of Creation slightly modifies some things to make the plot fall into place, in this case, the attack launched by Polybotes at the end of The Son of Neptune has a lot more fatalities than in the original series. Things might seem confusing now, but I promise that they'll be addressed later in the series as it goes on. Up next, I'd like to mention that I have the general plot planned out, but I'm not planning it out chapter by chapter as I wish to let this grow naturally. Because of this, there might be plotlines or other things that end up getting snubbed or end up contradicting something else, but I'll try my best to keep it consistent. I'm going to try to update it on Saturdays, I'm trying to do it like a webtoon where it comes out at midnight, so keep an eye out for the next chapter to drop around 12 AM EST every Saturday. Lastly, I'd like to take a moment and ask you to leave a review if you find the time as I wish to improve the story, so don't hesitate to point out problems with grammar and spelling, or if you just want to provide constructive criticism. Now that we're past all of that, I hope you enjoy the second chapter of Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation!

 

Chapter II

 

To Bash or Smash Is A Hard Choice

 

**KATYA**

 

"Wake up, Probatio!" Said a mysterious stranger, his voice harsh and rough

My eyes fluttered open and I took in my surroundings. My bed was as uncomfortable as ever, if I were none the wiser I would've guessed it was a nice solid stone slab. My eyes focused on the ugly mug staring down at me. It was the Centurion of the Second Cohort, Michael Finch. His long, greasy hair hovered inches from my face, forcing me to quietly gag.

"We need someone to clean out the stables, get it done before noon or there will be problems" Michael exclaimed before turning and walking out of my room, muttering something about lazy recruits.

Well, I say room but it's more like a small tent next to a lot of small tents all contained within one large tent. For the last few weeks, I've called this place home, at first begrudgingly but it beats trying to survive in the small podunk village I came from. I managed to hoist myself out of bed and tried to soak it all in. Even now it seems like a fever dream of a lunatic, out of nowhere my grandfather shows up and whisks me away to this nice apartment in Moscow. He told me all these wondrous things, how I'm a child of a goddess and how he too was a 'demigod'. I couldn't quite understand it, and not long after he was giving me a neatly folded letter and sending me away with a wolf. Before I knew it, I found myself at the gates of Camp Jupiter and now I fought to train, not to survive on cold Russian streets.

I pulled my hair up into a tight bun and grabbed my hammer that was leaning against my dresser. Spine Splitter is what I called it, a beautiful weapon that radiated an aura of power. The hammerhead was about as large as a cinderblock with ornate carvings wrapping around it. It was made of Imperial Gold, a sort of magical metal to could kill monsters with ease. I slipped the hammer into its holster on my hip, despite being such a large weapon it was surprisingly light. I pulled back the purple curtains that separated my tent from everyone else's and exited, ready for another day of being treated like dirt. With a heavy sigh I gathered myself and exited the big tent, my eyes reacted negatively to the sudden increase in brightness. I pushed my way through bustling demigods, all each scurrying to a new place to please someone who could care less about my existence. Eventually, I made it to the stables, despite being right next to the barracks it still took me an extraordinary amount of time to make it there. Almost immediately I knew something wasn't right, the Unicorns were acting strange, none of them could keep still. I tried in vain to calm them down with treats and soft talking. Fear began to rise in me, I knew that somehow this would be pinned on me and I'd be stuck scrubbing every brick in New Rome with a toothbrush again. Panic began to set in as I tried feverishly to get them to calm down, but my words were drowned out by their worried neighs. The wolf-headed lares that protected the stables looked at me disdain, but left me to my own devices, unable or most likely unwilling to help me in my plight.

"Man, calming them down is a lot easier to do when Jackson is around," A mysterious voice said behind her

I whipped around, ready to fight whoever snuck up on me, but was shocked to see that it was none other than Hazel Levesque, one of the few people that commanded the ultimate respect from everyone in the legion. Hazel put her hands up in a playful yield fashion, a big smile cracking along her face.

"Woah, calm down Kitten, it's just me"

"Oh, sorry" I stammered in broken English, "You spooked me"

"What are you even doing here this early?" Hazel questioned while trying to calm some of the unicorns down

"Finch told me to clean the stables" I struggled along, motioning with my hands, trying to remember the grammar and words Hazel taught me since I came to camp

It was an odd experience, to say the least, one of the most respected demigods offering to teach you English. It was difficult at first, but eventually, I began to get the hang of it despite my thick accent poking through. She must have spent weeks just trying to get basic grammar rules in my head but because of the English lessons, we both became somewhat good friends. I guess Hazel was just glad to have someone close to her age to hang around with. She told me she didn't have many friends at camp because they assumed she was to stick up to talk to her. Not only was she a child of Pluto, but also one of the few demigods who went on the ultimate quest to defeat Gaea and unite the opposing camps. Eventually, the lessons evolved into a friendship, something they both desperately needed. Soon after that she even became slight friends with Frank, one of the Praetors at camp. Unfortunately, this only led to more harassment from the other cohorts as they assumed I was breaking the pecking order.

"Oh, how silly, he should know better than to let someone on probation come near the stables," Hazel said, blushing harshly when she realized how rude that sounded, "Not that you don't know what you're doing"

I couldn't help but laugh, she had such old-fashioned mannerism, it was funny in a way. Hazel quickly turned away and started calming the Unicorns down while I snuck in to clean the stables and fill up their feedbags. It took a few hours, but the stables ended up in tip-top shape before I knew it the warning bell for the shift change was already ringing, letting me know I had an hour left before I start my first round of guard duty. Hazel and I departed from the stables and made our way towards New Rome as Hazel suggested we get some lunch before I go on guard duty. I had initially declined the offer as I didn't want to bother her, but after enough insisting and her threatening to drop me in a hole, I conceded and followed her back towards the barracks. From what I was told, the road between the cohort tents and New Rome were once bustling with life, Fauns and Demigods alike would be rushing up and down this street, unfortunately, a stark decline in Demigod population has made this road empty and bare. As we approached the Pomerian line we saw our old friend Terminus waiting haughtily for us.

"You know the rules!" The grumpy statue barked, "No weapons in New Rome!"

"Yeah, yeah," Hazel said, unhooking her Spatha and placing it in a bin sat next to the statue, "That's strange, is Julia not around?"

"No!" Terminus said, "She had the nerve to go and get sick on me! Can you imagine that! Getting sick while we have the whole of Rome to protect!"

"Oh, the audacity!" I said mockingly, placing Spine Splitter next to Hazel's sword, "How can we ensure our safety without little Julia around!"

"Do you think this is funny Mrs. Ivanov, I certainly don't think so!" Terminus was practically screaming at this point, "No matter, you're both clean, hurry up and enter so I don't have to look at either of you anymore!"

We giggled as we walked into New Rome, it was fun game amongst the campers to see who could make Terminus the angriest. As far as we knew though, only a few campers have managed to make him genuinely upset, but the campers who did seemingly forgot that it ever happened. Hazel and I walked through the calm streets of New Rome, the smell of baked goods and street food filled the air. New Rome was a nice little place, a haven for those who've served the legion. A place where they could go to college, live in an apartment, start a family, and even get paying jobs. In a literal sense, it was like someone plucked a piece of Rome and transported it to the United States, New Rome always brought up an odd emotion when I would explore the streets. Even though she had only been at Camp Jupiter for a few weeks it had the unmistakable feeling of home. Sure, she didn't get along with many people, and sure the only reason she got into the Second Cohort was that of my grandfather, a well-respected child of Bellona. Many assumed that I was something called a "legacy", or someone who has godly blood in them but isn't a demigod themselves. A part of me wanted to believe them but deep down I knew it wasn't true. My father would often tell me stories about my mother, how she helped him win many of his competitions. He would always say I was the spitting image of her, all the way down to her chocolate brown hair. I didn't know how much of it was true, when I was younger I just thought it was the ramblings of a man who lost everything to debt and drugs.

My wondering mind was snapped back to reality when we spotted a rather large man exiting the senate house. His purple cape billowing elegantly in the wind as he removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes tiredly. It was Frank Zhang, one of the Praetors and one of the few saviors of camp. He ran his hand through his short, crew cut hair, and walked slowly down the street, his armor reflecting the sun. Hazel ran so fast that you would have thought she had jumped on her supernaturally fast horse, she quickly caught up to him and wrapped him in a tight hug from behind. I hung behind for a few seconds, unsure of what to do until Hazel beckoned me over with a wide grin on her face. I had met Frank a few times before, usually, when he'd come stumbling into the apartment he shared with Hazel in New Rome. Frank would often spend most of his days cooped up in his office late into the night to ensure that Camp Jupiter ran smoothly, something he was constantly scolded for by both Hazel and Reyna. The way Hazel was acting made it seem that this was the first time she had seen him out in public in a while.

"Oh!" Frank exclaimed to the sudden impact, "And who might this be"

"You know it's me, Frank!" Hazel said, playfully punching in the arm as they pulled each other in a tight embrace, "What are you doing out here, I thought you had a meeting!"

"I do," Frank said, a large smile on his face, "But Reyna needed to get some things in order so it was postponed for an hour"

"Oh," Hazel said softly, a look of concern flashing across her face, "Did she give any reason, it's unlike her to push meetings of like that"

"Not here, I don't want anyone to overhear us," Frank said, placing his hand on her cheek in an attempt to soothe her

"Well, in any case, that means you have some time off" Hazels mood seemed to do a complete one-eighty, "Katya and I were going to that new Café in town before shift change, want to come with?"

"I could go for something to eat, I guess," Frank said, patting his stomach lightly

And like that, we three musketeers began heading down the cobbled streets while Hazel and Frank gave me a sort of impromptu tour. It wasn't long before we diverted from the main road and began to head down one of the many side streets. Soon after we found ourselves sitting in a relatively small café in the southern part of New Rome. Beanbags were positioned around small tables spread across that café. Magical torches sat attached to the walls, their fires dimly lighting the interior. There seemed to be a large number of clocks ticking away on each wall, which I found odd. A few groups of demigods gathered at a few tables on the far side of café, sitting near the shelves of books that lined the back wall. We ordered our food, a small plate of pirozhki and a coke for myself, a simple burger and fry combo with tea for Frank, and lastly a small bowl of shrimp gumbo and water for Hazel. We placed our food gingerly on the table and plopped down in our beanbags after giving the cashier a few denarii each to pay for our meal. I took a few bites of my meal when I noticed an overwhelming sense of relaxation wash over me.

"It's the smoke," One of the attendants said, it was as if she was reading my mind, "It's a comes from a derivative of the lotus flower"

"It's what!" Frank said, seemingly stuck in a state of anger and relaxation "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is!"

"Praetor Zhang, please calm down!" The attendant squeaked, "It's not the actual flower, it was specially bred to remove the negative side-effects, we burn small amounts and let it waft through the café so that you can relax while you eat. You'll find that you're able to keep a reasonable track of time and have a general grasp of your senses! It'll wear off as soon as you exit the shop, I swear!"

"Just make sure it doesn't get out of hand, one report and I'll have to shut it down," Frank said, waving the attendant off as if he didn't feel like concerning himself with the paperwork it'd require to deal with now

"Frank" Hazel cooed, placing her hand on his, "What's wrong, it's not like you to get so worked up over something so little"

Frank let out a long sigh and rubbed his eyes as if he was debating on divulging any information with me there.

"There's been an uptick of the number of demigods being killed recently," Frank said after a long silence, "Even Lupa and her wolves are seemingly killing off more potential demigods than usual"

"Oh no," Hazel said, covering her mouth with her hand, tears seemed to bite at her eyes, "Do you know if Camp Half-Blood is ok?"

"They're doing even worse than us," Frank said, his voice seemingly unaffected by the smoke, "We don't know what's happening, but there have been reports of mortals seeing monsters left and right. Even worse, Annabeth told me that there have been even more attacks along their border than usual, they've asked the Hunters for help but it seems unlikely that they'll be able to do anything worthwhile"

"Wait, mortals, seeing monsters?" Hazel questioned, "I thought the mist was supposed to block mortals from seeing things like that?"

"It is" Frank weary face was being highlighted by the smooth lighting of the torches, "From what I can gather, it seems like the mist is failing"

"Failing?" Hazel looked perplexed, "Do you think it has anything to do with Hecate?"

"It's possible, but her children don't think so, but you can never really trust them, can you" Frank sighed, sinking deeply into his chair, "We're having to double to the number of people on guard duty just in case, but even then, I doubt we could survive a monster attack"

"Why is that?" I chimed in, finding my voice, "Don't we have defenses to protect against things like that?"

"We did," Frank said, looking me in the eye, "But those defenses require demigods to operate"

"Katya" Hazel chimed in, her eyes full of sorrow, "You don't know this because you just came here, but there has been a sudden decline in the number of demigods making it to Camp Jupiter as of late. After Gaea tried to come back there was a giant who attacked the camp, we won but it cost the lives of many campers. There was a time when each cohort was full of demigods”

"After that, Lupa started to deem more and more potential demigods unworthy, which doesn't help," Frank said, drinking softly from his cup, "That's why there was so much commotion when you showed up on our doorstep"

"Oh," I said, my eyes suddenly interested in my lap, "I'm sorry, I didn't know things were so bad"

"Its fine, no one else really knows either" Frank said, chomping down on a few of his fries, "But enough about work, we came here to relax, didn't we?"

"Right," Hazel said, giving an unconvincing laugh as she wiped the tears from her eyes, "Katya, you've never really met Frank, right?"

"Oh, well no, I don't suppose I have," I said, raking my brain for any times I've spoken to him

"You're from Russia, right," Frank asked as if trying to remember something he read off a file, "Alexander Ivanov's granddaughter, right?"

My heart pinged at the mention of my grandfather's name, it had been a while since my thoughts had trailed back to home. I came from a small village along a frozen river a few days drive away from Moscow. My father had dragged us out there after getting into a pretty bad fight with his father. My father used to be a good person, several times Olympic gold winner and relatively famous, but it went downhill after my mother left. My grandfather tried his best to help him, but my father blamed the gods for his problems and was upset when my grandfather wouldn't take his side. When I was younger I put all the blame on my mother for letting this happen, but as I grew older I realized she must have had her reasons. I was only proven right after my father overdosed while I was out buying groceries with the money my grandfather would send me. Soon after, I was whisked away to Moscow by my grandfather who took care of me until Lupa came. Instinctively, I placed my hand on my shoulder when Lupa came to mind.

"That's right," I said quietly

"From what I've heard, he was a great legionnaire during his time, you should be proud to have a man like him in your family" Frank beamed at her, attempting to make light of the situation

"Right" I responded, "I wish I had the chance to get to know him better"

"Wait, you didn't know him that well?" Frank said, seemingly confused

"No," I replied, "Lupa came for me not long after my father died"

"Speaking of Lupa," Hazel said, seemingly trying to change the subject, "Katya, did Lupa seem strange during your time training with her"

"Wait," Frank said, slowly rubbing his chin, "When you first came to the Camp, you said you were attacked by one of the wolves and that you had escaped. Did something set them off?"

"Not that I know of," I said, trying hard to remember the things I had repressed, "I was getting ready to leave the Wolf House when one of Lupa's children leaped at me. He sunk his teeth into my shoulder, in a moment of instinct I grabbed the nearest sharp object and stabbed him in the throat. After he fell to the ground I ran as fast as I could before getting on a bus to head down here"

It was an odd sensation to get that off my chest. Not many campers believed my story, and many more were convinced that I was cursed and that I wasn't supposed to be at camp. It was a hard few weeks trying to adjust, no one here could speak Russian and few were willing to talk to me in Latin. Then Hazel came along and started teaching me English, which helped but I was still mocked for my broken English. Who would've thought, even children of gods and goddesses can still be terrible people.

Frank had gone to speak but was interrupted by the sudden sounds of explosions and sirens echoing outside. Hazel and Frank turned noticeably pale and turned to each other, before leaping up and dashing outside. I quickly gathered myself and darted outside, up and down the street people were running in panic. Men, women, and teenagers alike were running out of houses in full battle gear.

"Hazel," I said in a panic, "What's happening!"

"That's the attack siren," Hazel said, watching the chaos, "Katya, come on, we've got to get our weapons from Terminus"

"Hazel" Frank said, pulling Hazel in a tight hug, "Stay safe, I'm needed at the Senate building, meet me at the fifth cohort barracks if things get out of hand"

And with that, Hazel and I were sprinting full speed back to the entrance of New Rome. We arrived at the entrance and were greeted by a very angry Terminus. We quickly gathered our weapons and blew past him, despite his rage-fueled protests. We ran down the path to the barracks, adrenaline, and fear pushing us forward as we saw smoke billowing from each tent. What we arrived to was pure chaos, monsters of every sort were running through camp, attacking campers left and right. Even more seemed to be flooding in from the gates that lay in splinters on the ground. Hazel grabbed my shoulders, I winced as she pressed her hand into my shoulder, although it was healed due to ambrosia, it was still sore.

"Katya, look. This is what you've been training for, whatever you do, don't die, it's not fun" Hazel said, speaking from experience

With her great words of wisdom, Hazel ran off towards the stables, dodging monsters along the way. My mind went into battle mode, and with a fierce war cry that would make Jupiter tremble, I charged head first into battle. All around me were monsters. Tall, six-armed Earthborn were destroying things left and right. Cyclops and Lamias were being fought off by whatever forces we could muster. Explosions lit up the sky all around me as the cries of injured demigods rang through the air. High above me, I could see a swarm of Stymphalian birds getting ready to launch their own assault, only being held off by Reyna and her cohort of Pegasus soldiers. I fought my way back to my burning tent, smashing heads left and right. Soon after I was busting out of the blazing tent in full battle gear with my shield attached firmly on my left arm, not that it would matter much. Demigods ran around unorganized, some only wearing small bits of armor. Then I heard it, explosions and the screams of monsters coming for the Caldecott Tunnel, someone was on the far end of the invasion trying to help.

I pushed onward into the fray of the battle. In front of me slithered a Lamia, a woman who the body of a snake. In a storm of claws, she swatted at me, I was barely able to protect myself with my shield. The moment she relented I raised my hammer high and sent it crashing down onto her head, causing the monster to crumple into a cloud of dust. I reached down and grabbed a clump of it and threw it into the eye of an approaching cyclops. While he was distracted spitting out clumps of his ally and furiously rubbing his eye I sprinted into him, causing to knocked off balance as my shield collided with his stomach. With a fierce attack, I sent the attacking Cyclops back to the underworld. Even though the Cyclops was young, I still considered it to quite the accomplishment due to their enormous strength. There was no doubt in my mind that i'd be mush if it had gotten its hands on me. The fires burned brighter around me, wounded and dead demigods lay scattered at my feet, some messed up so bad that it would be impossible to identify. Holding my shield high I charged forward, killing monsters in a storm of fury as each swing of my hammer connected with their skulls. I could hear the voice of our new companion being projected through the battlefield trying to get the cohorts to organize. He was calling for ancient tactics to be used, something that could work.

I pushed past the destroyed gates and into the small, open field that separated us from the Caldecott tunnel. The Little Tiber flowed in between the two, I was told that the monsters shouldn't have been able to cross it, but It seems like the higher-ups have been wrong about a lot of things recently. Around me, I could see Hazel and other campers mounted up, using their horses to push the invading monsters back. Then I saw it, the person who was helping us fight off the attack was none other than another demigod, but this one seemed different. This demigod had blazing emerald green eyes and deep black hair hastily pushed back in a sort of makeshift quiff. A sadistic smile highlighted his cruel face as if he was enjoying tearing the monsters apart. What made him even stranger was that he could do so much damage without a weapon, the only notable thing about him was an odd, eye-shaped pendant that hung loosely around his neck. Like my weapon, it seemed to radiate an aura of power but it was so potent that she could feel it from where she stood. It was as if he was picked straight out of Avatar: The Last Airbender as fire and lightning exuded from his body. Monsters swarmed around him, and each one would be cut down by a blazing punch. With a snap of his finger explosions rang out across the battlefield, at first, I thought he was exploding a general area, but I soon realized that it was the monsters themselves that were becoming the explosions. While I was observing the work of this strange boy I found myself suddenly surrounded by many of the remaining monsters. At this moment I knew that I was not long for death and that my time had come. I was beaten to the ground, I closed my eyes and exhaled, at least I knew that I was going to die a hero and not cowering like some of the other campers. I felt a sudden warmth spread over me and I realized that it was not the warmth of death, but spray of fresh blood. I was covered in it, and standing in front of me was the stranger, his chest now hosting deep gashes from the claws of a Lamia. He stood over me, like a demented version of a guardian angel, blood flowing freely from his nose, ears, and eyes. He placed his hand over his chest and a soft green light began to emanate from them, seemingly speeding up the healing process. His chest mended together, leaving only the reminder of wide scars for his trouble. With a snap of his fingers, the surrounding monsters began to bloat up as if there was a sudden increase of gas inside of them and with a satisfying blast their monster dust coated the battlefield.

The stranger looked down at me, a kind smile replacing the look of mania he wore earlier. His gray shirt now tattered, revealing a body that was seemingly fit but not at the same time. He reached a hand down to me, my heart skipping a beat as he did, I grabbed onto it tightly and was surprised at its softness.

"Come on," The stranger said, his voice sounding rather indifferent, "We haven't lost yet"


	3. I Play Twenty Questions with A Wolf

Chapter III

I Play Twenty Questions with A Wolf

**BARTHOLOMEW**

I snapped awake, my body drenched in sweat as the memories of my dream came flooding in. Flashes of the charred corpses that littered the schoolyard burned deep in my mind. I could feel tears begin to drip down my cheek as my chest tightened in grief. I pulled myself into a tight ball, beating my head furiously in an attempt to knock the memories out. The knot in my chest only grew tighter, making it harder to breathe. Nothing I did seemed to ease the pain in since it happened six weeks ago. Six weeks I had been stuck in this den of wolves, slowly learning how to survive in this heartless world.

My mind fluttered back to the first time I woke up in the Wolf House. The she-wolf, Lupa, sat silently at the foot of the tattered bed I was laying in. In the darkness that surrounded her I could see the luminous eyes of her children around me, their soft growls made me uneasy. She looked me up and down as if she was debating to eat me now or to save me for later. My arms were weak and unsteady as I propped myself up to get a better look at the room. On a small nightstand sat my necklace, my bag propped neatly next to it.

“So,” Lupa said, her maw mimicking the movement of a human mouth, “The young demigod decides to wake up”

“Who are you?” I immediately questioned, a talking wolf was a bit surprising, even after all I went through

“I am Lupa,” She smiled, showing off a row of sharp fangs, “And you, young Bartholomew, are a potential meal”

My heart began to beat unsettlingly fast, I suppose I didn’t take to kindly to being called a meal. I began to slowly reach for the necklace, if they want to eat me then I won’t make it easy for them. Wolves began to stalk slowly out of the darkness, their stormy gray fur being illuminated by the lone gaslamp that burned brightly nearby. I felt my fingers touch the cool metal that made the eye of the necklace, my arm aching as I slowly attempted to grab it. I yanked my arm back in fear as one of the nearby wolves let out a horrendous noise. It was like a howl, growl, and bark all combined into one fear-inducing burst.

“It would not be wise to mount an attack,” Lupa said, a cruel sneer played across her face, “You may be a demigod, but we’ve eaten plenty of your kind before”

“So, you’re just like that monster that attacked me?” My voice became indignant, “You’ve captured me, now what”

“Captured?” Curiosity seeped into Lupa’s voice, “Oh no young demigod, you came to me of your own volition. Didn’t your father mention me?”

I thought back to the moments before I fled from my home. The fear in my father’s voice as he told me to find Lupa. My mind lit up like a switchboard, Was he talking about this Lupa? A wolf? I couldn’t make sense of it, but to be fair it’s safe to assume that any form of logic has left my life completely.

“He did,” I managed to mutter, “I just don’t understand”

“None of them do, you’re hardly the first demigod to wind up in this house” Lupa trotted closer, the intense look of a predator becoming more visible.

“There’s that damn word again!” I could feel my fury begin to build, something I knew would only make my situation more precarious, but stupidly I soldiered on, “What even is a demigod!”

“We should really start making pamphlets for this,” Lupa rolled her eyes as if she’s heard this question a million times before, “A demigod, put simply, is the offspring of a mortal and a divine being. You happen to be the offspring of a Roman god or goddess, so you found yourself here, at the Wolf House.”

“And why am I here” I pressed, knowing that playing 20 questions with a talking wolf isn’t exactly the greatest idea I’ve had

“Simple, your godly parent got freaky with a mortal and it’s my duty to either eat you or train you” Lupa begin to lick her lips as the other wolves began to crawl closer, dozens of them were surrounding me

Then I felt it, the same buzz that I felt that day. It washed slowly down my neck, I knew instantly it was a warning of impending doom, like a messed-up Spidey sense. This time I knew I had to get my necklace, this time I refuse to not put up a fight. I shot my hand out and quickly grasped the necklace, I could feel its power radiating through me, slowly healing what damage it could. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a gray streak leap towards me, the same wolf who had howled at me earlier had gone for the kill. Yet something was strange, like before time seemed to move at a snail’s pace, but a dark miasma seemed to fill the air. I could feel it seeping into me, corrupting my mind and polluting it with negativity. I could hear the screams of the wolves in my head, all of them crying out in pain and fear. Their voices rattled around, making it hard to concentrate, my head began to throb as their voices got louder and more aggressive. I could feel the necklace trying its best to fight off the effects of the smoke, do its best to keep the worst of it from affecting me. Are the wolves going through the same thing? I thought to myself Oh god, I just want it to stop! I knew could take much more of this, I could feel my mind hitting its limit. I felt like an aerosol can that was thrown into the fire, an intense feeling of pressure began to build within me. I could feel my body hitting its limit, I just wanted the pain to end, the pain was too much.

I felt the teeth of the flying wolf sink into my arm, causing even more pain to rush through my body. Then I felt it, the feeling of the pressure bursting out of me in a pain filled scream. A wave a magical energy burst from my body, destroying the miasma that filled the room. All the wolves were thrown against the wall due to the blast, I laid there for what seemed like hours as blood began to drip profusely from my nose.

“What was that?” Lupa croaked, her voice seemed dazed and confused, “Who are you?”

I tried to respond, but I could feel my body begin to fail and I slowly began to drift back into a deep sleep.

My mind returned to the present as I forced myself to calm down, I knew I had to accomplish the task that my mother gave to me. Mom, I thought to myself, even saying in my head was odd, I’d only met her once and even then, it was just in a dream. I cupped my face in my hands and rubbed, letting my mind drift back to when I met her. I felt like I was sinking, deeper and deeper into in the swirling storm that surrounded me. I looked around, trying to make sense of what was going on, far below me I spied an island floating peacefully. It was strange, to say the least, it looked as if it was ripped straight from the ground. The remnants of an abandoned temple sat crumbling on the far side of the island. Various statues and columns lined the road that leads to a bleak courtyard. A fountain was fixed in the center of the courtyard, sitting on the fountains walls was a young woman running her hand lazily through the crimson water. I landed softly on the ground, the surrounding storm still raging around me.

The woman looked up, her emerald green eyes looking me up and down. Her unusually pale skin was contrasted sharply by her jet-black hair. She was hauntingly beautiful in every sense of the word, like a pale ethereal rose. She raised a red-stained hand from the water and beckoned me closer as if she had been waiting for me.

“I wondered when we’d meet again,” She said, her voice was soft and deceiving

“I’m sorry, but can you explain to me what’s going on?” I asked, “Because just a few minutes ago I was dying in a bed surrounded by a bunch of hungry wolves”

“Maybe you’ve died, maybe you haven’t” She responded, shrugging her shoulders, “The outcome is up to you, but now we must talk”

I settled in next to her, I noticed that she smelled faintly of lavender. Running around the courtyard was a large black lab chasing around a polecat. They seemed to be playing some type of tag. The Labrador would run up and tap the weasel on the head before darting in the opposite direction, trying its best to not get caught again.

“Do you like them?” The mysterious woman asked, looking at the pair running around in amusement, “The little weasel, Gale, usually wins”

“It’s a Polecat,” I said, correcting her. I furrowed my brow in confusion, “How did I know that?”

“Because you’re one of mine,” The mysterious woman said with a giggle, pushing her shoulder length hair behind her ear, “All of my children have an innate sense for most animals, it helps when finding a familiar”

“Wait” My heart skipped a beat as I gazed at the woman sitting next to me.

Then it clicked the jet-black hair, the emerald green eyes, the unusually pale skin. It all made sense, the woman sitting next to me was none other than my mother. I couldn’t speak, all my life she was kept a secret from me, someone my father refused to tell me about except when he was hammered. Tears began to well in my eyes, anger, and sadness filled my heart. I felt the soft hand of my mother gingerly rub my back in an attempt to comfort me.

“I suppose you have a lot of questions,” She said

“Why now” Was all I could ask, “Why reveal yourself now after everything that’s happened”

“Because I couldn’t before” A small tinge of grief seeped into her voice, “I wanted to Barry, I really did, but I was stopped, betrayed by my own daughter”

“Wait, I have siblings?” I questioned, surprised by this revelation

“A few” Her eyes filled with sorrow as her face drooped, I took it to mean that there used to be more than just a few, “But enough about that, you’ll meet them in due time. But time is scarce in dreams and there’s plenty we need to discuss”

“What else is there to discuss?” My mind was already boggled by the revelation of the other half of my family

“I need your help” She turned to me, her white dress began to dip into the red water but surprisingly stayed clean, “One of the people I trusted more than anything betrayed me and it could spell doom for everyone”

“What did she do?” I questioned, shocked that someone would be brave enough to betray someone who could easily destroy them

“She stole the Grimoire of Creation, a precious artifact that took me many centuries to procure” Her face was filled with fear, which worried me quite a bit

“What can that Grimoire do?” I probed, knowing that I should also fear something that could scare a Goddess

“Everything” She responded simply, her voice held ransom by fear, “If Pasiphae figures out how to use the grimoire then she could do whatever she wanted. Even with a negligible amount of the grimoire's power, she was able to bar me from contacting you and place a hex on poor Lupa and her wolves”

“So, she’s responsible for that black miasma I saw?”

“How do you know what it looked like?” She questioned cautiously

“Well, Lupa and her wolves began to get aggressive. I grabbed my necklace to defend myself and when I did I could see this strange black smoke seeping off of them” I racked my brain for every little detail that would be useful

“And what happened next?” My mother said drawing in closer

“I began to feel this pressure building up in me, then I literally blew up and next thing I knew I was sitting with a bunch of confused wolves as blood poured out of me”

“So you really are one of mine!” The woman said, clapping her hands together in a sudden explosion of excitement

“I’m sorry, I know we established that you’re my mom and all, but can you explain what you mean by that?” I asked, confused

“Well that’s simple, I’m the Goddess Trivia, or Hecate, it doesn’t really matter which one because they’re one and the same” She continued, “I control the Mist, it’s a sort of force that allows protects mortals from the happenings of our world. Because of this, my children have a natural affinity to control the Mist as well, something mortals call ‘magic’. That pressure you felt was your natural defenses kicking in, your magic began to build, but since you don’t know how to properly channel it, you sort of just let it go in one big burst.”

“Hecate” I muttered, it was strange having my mother’s name roll off my tongue

“Please, Barry, just call me Mom” Hecate interjected

“Mom” I obliged, “Are you saying I’m a Wizard?”

Hecate let out a snort before regaining her composer. It was comforting knowing that I could still crack jokes even at times like these.

“Sure honey, you can be a wizard if you want to,” Hecate said, slapping my back lightly

“So, what do I do now?” I asked, unsure of what the future held for me

“Now it’s time for you to make a choice” Hecate said, turning deathly serious, “The reason why I was able to bring you here is because you were able to dispel the hex that Pasiphae laid on Lupa and her children and by doing so you weakened the magic that Pasiphae was using to keep me from you”

“So what does that mean for me?”

“It means that you now sit at a crossroads” With a wave of her hand the road that leads to the end of the island split into two, the raging storm converged at the end of both roads and formed themselves into flickering portals, both showing possible futures. The left side showed an endless meadow of people wandering around in a daze. On the right the portal flickered, it showed me standing next to a girl around my age. Her soft blue eyes gazed up at me, her mousy face contorted in a smile. A chocolate brown braid was thrown over her shoulder, resting on her chest, her arm was intertwined with mine. We both seemed happy as we walked down the streets of an odd city.  “You could choose the road on the left, you can let yourself die now and become a meal for Lupa and her Children. Your soul would be sent to the Asphodel Meadows and you’ll wander around aimless, forever” Hecate then motioned her hand to the neighboring portal, indicating the other road I could choose, “Or you can choose the road on your right, I’ll pull you back from the brink of death and you’ll be able to live. But I must warn you, this option won’t be easy, you’ll have to fight and you’ll know what it means to lose everything, but you’ll find closure and you might have a chance at happiness”

“So, I have the fun choices of death or not death, geez, I wonder what choice I’ll make?” A hefty amount of sarcasm could be found in my voice

“There’s no need for that Barry, it seems that our time is running out” Hecate held up her hand, which seemed to be flickering in and out of existence, “You must make your choice, no matter how painfully obvious it is. But now, I must leave you to your own devices. Stay with Lupa, she’ll guide you and teach you how to control the mist, hopefully, we can meet again” 

And with that, my mother flickered out of existence, the polecat and dog leaving with her. It was an odd feeling, to say the least, sixteen years of not knowing who she was only for her to appear in my dreams after I get attacked by a hexed wolf pack. I slowly walked towards the portal, trying my best to memorize the face of the girl next to me. With one confident breath, I stepped into the portal and felt myself rocketing towards consciousness. After I regained consciousness, I had a long conversation with Lupa and the events that occurred. Then for the next six weeks, she gave me the crash course in surviving as a demigod.

As my mind returned back to the present I pulled myself off the dingy old mattress and reached for the bag my father gave me. When I had first opened it, I was surprised at the contents, as was Lupa. The bag was far larger on the inside than it appeared, which Lupa explained was a common enchantment for most demigods. Inside of the bag was enough MRE’s to last any normal person months. Survival gear lay scattered at the bottom of the bag along with a few tents. Stacks of clothes padded the side, which all conveniently fit him perfectly. Small yellow squares and vials of a strange golden liquid were found in numerous amounts spread around the bag. Lupa called them Ambrosia and Nectar, food of the gods, she warned not to eat or drink too much of it or else the consequences would be dire.

I pulled a gray shirt and black pants from the depths of the bag and changed into them. I combed the room making sure I don’t leave anything behind. After spending so much time here, training and growing, it was an odd feeling knowing that I’d be leaving today. I packed everything as neatly as I could into the bag and slung it over my shoulder. I picked up my necklace off the bedside table and hooked it around my neck, letting it hang freely. I took one last deep breath of the musty air that filled the house and left for the last time. In the courtyard sat Lupa, who was sunbathing on a large rock as her children ran around playing or sleeping. As I descended the steps down to the ground floor I heard the panicked yelps of a young wolf cry out. The yelps quickly turned into blood-curdling howls, the howls of something being attacked. I saw wolves begin to rush across the courtyard and out towards the front gate. I followed, fearing that a monster was attacking. It wouldn’t be the first time it happened, there were a few accidents during the period I lived here, most of which were quickly resolved by Lupa. I rushed after them, hoping that whatever was attacking would be fought off by the stronger wolves. But when I arrived it was the exact opposite of a monster attack, this time it was a group of wolves ganging up on a smaller wolf. Dozens of wolves surrounded the poor puppy, blood coated its fur as large bite marks etched itself across its body. Wolves would leap in and out, biting and tossing the puppy around as it cried out in pain. Flashes of my past begin to force its way into my mind, times when I would be beaten and ganged up on. Anger began to flow through me as I empathized with the wolf pup. I knew Lupa had told me to never mess her children, but this was cruel and I refused to let it continue. I started screaming at the wolves, trying to scare them off as I ran head first towards them, unfortunately, that only seemed to entice them even further to toss the puppy around. I planted my foot firmly into the side of the nearest wolf, sending it flying sideways into a tree. I slowly worked my way towards the dying puppy, using magic to harden my fists and legs I slowly kicked and punched my way into the center of the attackers. The puppy laid defenseless on the ground, blood pouring out the various ones that littered its body. My training kicked in as I hovered over its body, I held my hands out as is I was basking for warmth at a campfire and I began to will the natural magic that made up earth to do my bidding. I felt the energy of the forest and grass as it funneled through my necklace and out of my hands. A soft green glow emanated from my palms, I thought about how I badly I wanted the puppy to live. Wolves began to walk around me in a circle, trying to find an opening to attack them both. I watched with pride as the wounds began to close and the puppy’s breathing began to steady. Behind me I could hear the steady growl of a wolf approaching me, with inhuman reflexes I whipped around and slammed my fist on the ground, causing a surge of magical energy to shoot through the ground. A stone fist burst from the ground under the wolf, catching it right in the ribs as it flew into the air.

“What did I tell you!” Lupa said, appearing from the hole in the front of the house, “I told you not to interfere with what happens with my children”

“I don’t care what you said!” I lashed out, “I refuse to sit idly by as they rip apart a child!”

“That child is weak, he’s a drain to the pack!” Lupa snarled, approaching me

“I don’t care!” I yelled, getting ready to attack, “Those are your rules Lupa, I agreed to follow them for as long as I was being trained, but no longer. I’ve decided that it’s time for me to leave and go to Camp Jupiter”

“How dare you presume to do anything,” Lupa said, getting ready to attack, “Not only have you broke my rules, but you’re nowhere close to being ready!”

Lupa lunged at me, but this time I was ready. She glided towards me, fangs ready to tear me piece by piece. I placed my hand on the cool earth and let its energy flow through me, I doubt Lupa thought that she’d be on the receiving end of my magic. I envisioned a gust of wind circling around me, picking up the dust to obscure me from their view. Around me, I could hear wolves howling in anger.

“Enough of these silly games!” Lupa yelled, “You broke my rules and you shall be punished for them. Come out and face your death like a demigod!”

“You told me yourself Lupa” I yelled back through the storm that whipped up around me, “Only a fool gives up their life so easily. I don’t want to fight, call them off and I’ll leave peacefully”

“I taught you how to weave the Mist into your words” Lupa growled, “Not even Venus could charmspeak me and you’re nowhere near the level of a Goddess”

While Lupa was monologuing about all the various ways she and her children would rip us apart I slowly let the storm disperse. Below me, I could feel the earth rumbling and shifting to fit my needs of escape. With one solid punch the earth crumbled under me, dropping me into a small tunnel, it was a tight fit but is perfect for my escape. I slowly trudged on as the tunnel collapsed behind me, stopping Lupa from pursuing me further.

Soon the tunnel opened and I found myself in a park surrounded by buildings. I looked around, trying to find my bearings. On a sign nearby, it read ‘Golden Gate Park’ in bold, golden letters. Around me people milled about, not paying me any attention even though I just popped out of the ground like a mole person. I gingerly placed the wolf on the ground and ran my hand through its fur. It was soft but also coarse with dried blood, I was relieved to see that I closed most of its wounds. I reached into my bag and dug out a small cube of ambrosia and tore off a tiny piece and forced it down the wolf's throat while taking a big bite for myself. Lupa had always yelled at me when I did that, she said it’d burn me up from the inside out but only a sizable chunk would heal the damage that magic did to my body, the plus side was that it tasted like my favorite treat, black licorice. I watched as the wolf slowly opened its eyes, seemingly surprised that it’s still alive. Slowly it climbed to its wobbly feet and took a few steps, it kind of reminded me of a newborn deer. Within seconds the young pup located a nice bush and hiked its leg up, charming. He turned to me and gave me a confused bark, which was surprising as I’m sure wolves can’t really bark. What was even more surprising was that I could understand what he was saying. Well, not exactly, it still sounded like a bark but I could understand what he meant by the bark.

“Yes you’re still alive, no you’re not in any danger” I responded, petting him lightly on his head

He let out a series of barks, asking me why I went through so much trouble to rescue him

“I guess I saw a little bit of me in you, I just couldn’t let them kill you”

He walked up to me and nuzzled my hand in gratitude.

“I suppose I’ll need to give you a name, how do you like Lupus?” I scratched his chin lightly

Lupus let out a series of happy barks, excited at the prospect of having a friend. It was strange life were your only friend is a puppy of the wolf that fostered the founders of a mighty empire.

I packed up my bag and made sure I didn’t leave anything behind before setting off down the street. A few people stopped me along the way, most of which just wanted to pet Lupus, which he happily obliged to. Others were worried about him not having a leash, but overall the people of the city were rather nice. We walked for what seemed like hours, just trying to figure out where Camp Jupiter was. It wasn’t long before the sun became too much to bear and we stopped at a small café, through the passing tourists I gathered that I was somewhere in San Francisco. Lupus hopped up on a seat and placed his front paws excitedly on the table. A waitress came and took my order while making small talk about what kind of breed he was. It was a nice change of pace from his recent life, it almost felt normal in a way, besides the fact that there was a wolf trying to nibble on my fingers. I played with Lupus as I waited for my order to arrive, a small plate of spaghetti with meatballs and coke along with a cold bowl of water for Lupus. As I ate I questioned as to why Lupus was attacked, which was bothering me as it seemed rather strange that a whole pack would turn to tearing one of their own apart. In a series of barks, he explained to me that the male wolf that was taking care of him had upset Lupa and as punishment the pup they sired together would be killed, which was rather upsetting to me. We talked about our lives for a while, I vented about how my life practically flipped upside down and was surprised to find that Lupus was a rather good listener. After seeing some odd stares from passerby’s, I decided it was time to leave, I left a $20 on the table and set off down the street, Lupus at my heels.

“So, Lupus, you got any idea where we’re supposed to go?” I asked looking around, trying to decide which street to go down

“We could always follow those guys” Lupus barked back, lifting a paw to point at a group of teenagers around my age who were wearing full roman battle gear, all rushing down the street in a panic, all heading towards a giant pillar of smoke that was painting the sky black.

Twenty minutes later Lupus and I found ourselves at the mouth of a large tunnel surrounded by monsters. Ungodly abominations surrounded a group of heavily armed teenagers, scattered around them were the lifeless bodies of their comrades. I could feel my body heating up as adrenaline pumped through my veins. I could feel the pressure of my magic building up inside of me as my hatred for monsters rose to the surface. I told Lupus to run and hide, I wasn’t going to let my new buddy die a painful death just because he wants to feel heroic. Which was a bit ironic considering I was about to rush right into a horde of monsters for the same exact reason. A smile began to force itself onto my face, I loved the rush of the mist flowing through my body and responding to my will. I loved the feeling of winning a fight, the feeling of strongest, the feeling to break something and being praised for it. Fighting was therapeutic for me, even more so when it was against monsters.

I charged at the closest enemies, a platoon of gray zombies in tattered military uniforms. I called upon the fires of the earth and let my hands light up in a blaze of anger as I rushed towards them, the small beady lights in their eye sockets grew large in surprise as a fist collided into them. I danced around them, grabbing, twisting, and breaking everything, I could until they were reduced to nothing but a fine powder. I broke through a line of Centaurs as they tried to clobber me with thick wooden clubs. I envisioned them expanding like an over-inflated balloon and popping in an explosion of dust, and was delighted to see that the row of centaurs now sat in hopeless heaps of dust. I pushed forward until I found myself face to face with a group of confused demigods who all turned their weapons to me and rose their table like shields. I quickly put my hands up and the leader of the group spoke to me.

“Tell me who you are right now or I’ll cut you down where you stand!” He said to me, his voice echoing off the helmet that obscured his face, a long spear pointed directly at my heart with a large shield protecting his body

“I’m Bartholomew Cooperman, son of Trivia, I’m here about the monster infestation in your camp” I chuckled nervously at them, hoping the humor would translate well in this stressful situation

“What did you do to those monsters!” One of the nearby kids squeaked in both fear and relief, “One second they were there and the next moment they’re like, poof!”

“I can control the mist, I wanted them to explode and well it suffices to say that they are rather exploded” I made a soft explosion sound which caused the kid to chuckle, which was surprising with what he just went through

“Enough, Terry, we don’t have time for this!” Helmet Head said, “Bartholomew, can you still fight?”

“I think I’ve got enough monster killing juice left in my tank” I reached behind me and grabbed a few squares of ambrosia and gave it, “Take these, heal anyone you can, if you’ve got a shield then follow me!”

“Charles, please!” Terry objected, his messy brown hair was matted with sweat “What if more monsters come!”

“Then you fight them off, you’re a demigod of the Legion, figure it out!” Charles responded, tightening his helmet

As we charged into the tunnel, I was hoping that I didn’t accidentally barrel headfirst into the grill of Hummer. What I came out to was far worse, it was quite literally hell. Monster of all shapes and sizes swarmed around, attacking campers left and right, the smell of blood and smoke filled the air. I looked around wildly, trying to figure out the best course of action. It was quite simply bad; the campers were unorganized and being cut down left and right. Far ahead of me I could see the remnants of a gate and further behind that I could see large plumes of smoke and embers flying into the sky.

I grabbed a bottle of nectar and chugged it to the shock of demigods behind me.

“What do you think you’re doing!” Charles screamed in a fit of rage, “You’re going to kill yourself!”

“Is that a promise?” I responded calmly, turning towards Charles and handful of demigods that followed me, all armed with spears and scutum, I immediately launched into battle mode “We’re going to have to take back the land between us and the gate but it’s not going to be easy. Charles, I need you to organize your men and form a testudo, no matter what you must march forwards and push the monsters towards the center and destabilize their formations!”

“And what are you going to do?” Charles said, surprised at my rather suicidal plan

“I’m going to pick off as many as I can before my heart gives out, I’ve bought myself some extra time with the ambrosia but it isn’t a lot” I could feel my mind rushing, trying to figure out all the possible battle strategies that my father taught me as a child

“This might be suicidal, but it’s all we’ve got,” Charles said, turning back to his men. “Bartholomew, if we live through this then I’m totally buying you a drink!”

“I’ll look forward to it,” I said, running towards the nearest battle as Charles rallied up his men and began to slowly push forward.

I felt the rush of the battlefield pulse through me. I could feel changes in the air pressure as weapons were swung, the cries of the earth as bodies and dust alike rained upon it. The cries of demigods who fell in battle sung out in a cacophony of pain that was drowned out by the sound of war. I danced around monsters, throwing fireballs, smiting them with lightning, while forcing some of them to explode. I felt like a god as I plowed through their ranks, monsters began to scream in terror when they realized their ranks were thinning. Even then, though, it wasn’t enough as monsters outnumbered us demigods 10 to 1. I knew I’d be dead long before I could kill these monsters alone and I could already feel my body shutting down.

“Demigods of Camp Jupiter!” I yelled, my voice being carried by the wind, “Do not let them separate you, we are strongest in a group! If you have a shield then form up and create a wall of spikes!”

I ran around frantically, trying to save as many demigods as possible. Demigods looked on in confusion, trying their best to search for the source of the voice. I heard the clop of hooves rush behind me before I felt a heavy branch crash with the back of my head. My eyes went blurry as an intense ring filled my ears. I struggled to get back up on my feet but was stopped when a cloven hoof stomped on my back. I turned my head of looked up at the ugly, contorted face of a centaur. His scraggly beard had bits of bread stuck inside, he raised his heavy branch high above his head, ready to finish me. Suddenly, a series of golden tipped arrows found a new home in his chest. The centaur exploded in a thick cloud as his weapon thudded loudly onto the ground. I regurgitated my spaghetti on the ground and a hefty amount of blood as I pulled myself off the ground.

I could hear the sounds of screaming demigods rallying together as a wall of shields erected itself with a series of spears poking out of the gaps. I pulled myself together and charged deeper into the fray. I found myself at the bank of a winding river, I could feel the energy pouring off it, I could feel the rage it felt at this violation. Large planks of wood stretched from one bank to another, allowing the monsters to safely cross over the river. Near the gates, I could see a group of demigods on horseback, their long swords cutting down as many monsters as they could manage.

“Calvary!” I shouted, catching a few of them off guard, “Protect the flanks of the wall, make sure no monster prevents them from pushing forwards!”

Slowly but surely the number of monsters began to thin out, they stood no match against the overwhelming force of the shields pushing them further back. Then I saw her, the same girl from my dream was surrounded by a group of monsters. She swung her hammer left and right, trying her best to keep them at bay, blocking whatever attacks she could with her shield. Her armor and weapons were stained red with blood. I rushed towards her, determined to save the girl Trivia had shown me. I saw a weird snake lady raise a clawed hand, ready to strike as the other monsters beat her to the ground. I didn’t have time to think, I knew I had to act. I leaped in front of her just as the snake woman brought her claws crashing down, tearing my shirt and leaving blood filled gashes. I looked down at her, despite the cuts and swelling I was certain that it was the same girl I had seen. I couldn’t let her die, not until I figured out why Trivia showed us together. Maybe it was her attempt to entice me, I guess it’s not entirely uncommon for Gods or Goddess to use another person as a way to manipulate people.

I used my dwindling supply of magic to heal the wounds on my chest as best I could, I didn’t have enough magic to heal them completely but it was enough to close them up. With a snap of my fingers, the surrounding monsters all exploded, coating me with a fine layer of their nastiness. I looked down at her and gave her a comforting smile and extended a helping hand.

“Come on,” I said, trying to sound as normal as possible, “We haven’t lost yet”

She reached out and took my hand, seemingly relieved to be alive. She pushed her hair out of her face and picked up her hammer, which was surprising because the thing was massive.

 “What was that!” She said, her voice hardy and strong, but with a thick accent

“Magic” I responded, wiggling my fingers as small sparks of lightning shot from them

“Oh,” She responded, trying to figure out the full implications of finding out magic is real, “No matter, thank you for saving me but we need to save the camp!”

I turned beet red, I had completely forgotten about the assault happening around me. I mean, sure, you’d assume that the potential threat of death would keep you on your toes, but for a few minutes of I was completely oblivious. We turned towards the thinning number of monsters, the approaching wall of shields drove what few remained further from the walls. The monsters who tried to attack the sides were quickly cut down by the cavalry, my plan had worked! The mysterious girl and I charged back into battle, fighting together as if we’d been teammates since the dawn of time. We danced around each other in an elegant display of metal and magic. It wasn’t long before the monsters began to turn tail and flee out of the tunnel. I was worried that Charles and his men were nowhere to be seen, I hoped that they had joined with the main group, but it was a pipe dream at best.

As the sounds of war died down and the cheers of the surviving demigods quickly replaced it. I felt the familiar warm drip of blood flow from my face, I knew it wouldn’t be long until I either die or pass out, preferably the latter. The world began to spin around me and I struggled to stay on my feet.

“Are you ok?” The girl asked, “You seem a pale”

“Nah, I’m alright,” I said, my voice slurred, “It’s how I usually look”

Suddenly, a large shadow flew over me, in a panic I panic I readied myself, ready to fight off my new flying foe. But what landed in front of me was far scarier, it was a young woman with dark hair in ornate armor. A tattered purple cape swung freely around her shoulders, draping itself onto the large, winged horse she rode upon. She pointed her glittering sword at my throat and began to bark orders at me.

“You tell me who you are right now, or so help me you’ll die where you stand!”

“Just give it few minutes, I’m sure you’ll be able to achieve the same thing with less effort” A part of him wished he was joking, but he knew that he’d be dead soon if he doesn’t eat some ambrosia

“Enough jokes!” She yelled pressed the tip of her sword into my throat, “I saw what you did and I heard you barking orders like you’re one of us. I want to know who you are and who sent you!”

“Ask Charles” I replied, pushing the sword out of the way, “I know you’re angry, but could you not scream so loud?”

“Katya, explain who this is now!” The woman asked, trying to restrain her anger

“I, I don’t know Reyna!” Katya scrambled to recount the events of the last hour. She explained how I came in like a maniac, killing monsters left in right while barking orders to organize. She talked about the wondrous magic I could do and ended her frantic speech with us charging back into attacking monsters, but I was distracted as I began hallucinating from the pain.

“We’ll take him to the Senate house for questioning, if he can do what you say he can then he just might have the answers we need”

 “You’ll never take me alive copper!” I yelled, my mind completely scrambled from pain and exhaustion. I attempted to run but quickly tripped over myself, passing out on the cold hard earth as I was lifted onto the back of the winged horse.


	4. It's My Fault and They Know It

Alright, i'm going to level with you, i have no clue why my formatting is doing what it's doing. I'll try to resolve it ASAP and it'll either be by me trying to manually reformat the previous chapters (i've tried, it's never worked), figuring out why this one specifically decided to keep the original formatting or by me formatting this chapter to look like the others. Until then it will stay like this, some of you might love it or some of you might hate it, either way, i hope to fix it soon! 

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Chapter IV

It’s My Fault and They Know It

**BARTHOLOMEW**

 

 I woke up with the worst headache ever experienced, it felt like my skull was ready to burst open as the pain traveled into every limb. I could feel something heavy laying on my chest, it was warm and smelled faintly of soap. Slowly I opened my eyes and grimaced as the light made my headache more. I tried to move but found it increasingly difficult to lift anything more than a few inches. Craning my neck, I saw Lupus snoozing away, curled up into a small ball in my chest. I tried to softly blow on him to get his attention but seemed to annoy him more than anything.

            “You’re awake!” I heard Katya cry, her voice sounded weary, “Doctor Mendez, he’s awake!”

            Katya quickly jumped over to me and helped pull me into a sitting position, causing Lupus to bark in annoyance as he was pushed onto my lap. I gazed around the room and took in all the details. It looked like I was in some sort of military hospital tent that you’d see in a war. Short, metal framed beds lined the wall, most of which contained other people who must’ve been injured in the attack. A beige tent contained everything, I could see the soft glare of the sun flood in from the flaps that led outside. The soft beeping of health monitors was barely audible through the hiss of ventilators. _I could’ve prevented this_ I thought, looking around at the broken and injured demigods. As I gazed around I spied a familiar helmet sitting on the bedside table of a man across from me, it was dented and broken, but unmistakable. In the background, I could hear someone scrambling to grab things. A few seconds later an older woman burst through the back of the tent and rushed towards my bed. She wasn't particularly old, I'd wager she was no older than 30. She looked like a stereotypical doctor, white lab coat and all.

            “Doctor,” I said, my voice weak and worried with the answer I might receive. I rose my arm as high as I could and pointed towards the man in the bed across from me, “Who is that?”

            Doctor Mendez followed my finger and laid eyes on the man, her face dropped into sadness. I could feel my stomach drop, deep down I knew I was right and I knew the news wasn’t going to be good.

 "That's Charles, poor thing" Doctor Mendez muttered, keeping her voice low as if she thought Charles would overhear them, "He's the last surviving member of his barrack. I still don't know how I'll break the news to him, those boys were like family" 

 I could feel my fists begin to tremble as grief and anger overtook me. I knew there was no one else to blame but myself. I was responsible for the deaths of those in his barrack, their blood was on my hands. I felt tears slowly slide across my cheek, something that's been happening a lot to me lately. Charles' face was soft and free of worry, sitting on the fence of life and death.

            “Doctor Mendez,” I looked her deep in the eyes, “Is he going to live?”

            Her eyes softened into a look of pity, I guess she could see the pain in my eyes. I could see the minor twitches in her face as she debated telling me.

 "Honestly, I don't know," She said softly, reaching for the stethoscope that hung around her neck, "He's been out as long as you have, we’ve tried Unicorn Draught, Necter, Ambrosia, and even nature magic but he’s barely improved”

 Doctor Mendez pulled down the gown I was wearing and pressed the cold tip of the stethoscope onto my chest, causing me to shiver in response. In the corner of my eye, I could see Katya wrestling with Lupus, trying to keep him from bothering Doctor Mendez as she worked. Doctor Mendez glanced over at my trembling fist, and let out a soft chirp.

            “You shouldn’t blame yourself for what happened,” She sounded as if she was speaking from experience, “You’re not a god, you couldn’t have known it was going to happen”

            “But what if” I found myself saying, “What if there was something I could do, something that could’ve saved them?”

 "Stop that," She said softly, trying to comfort me, "You're doing nothing but hurting yourself by thinking like that. Other Demigods saw what you did on the battlefield, how you organized everyone. They think you're a hero!" 

            “Oh yeah!” I snapped back, “Some hero I must be, telling one group of teenagers to push a hoard of monsters into another group of teenagers!”

 I slapped the stethoscope away and forced myself out of the bed. I blocked out the protest of my body and hobbled over to the bed Charles laid in. Doctor Mendez firmly grabbed my shoulder and attempted to wrestle me back to my bed, but with a quick jolt of electricity, I forced her off me. I gazed down at his withered and wounded body as a series of machines and tubes kept him alive. _I have the power to save him_! Was the only thing I could think as I hovered over him. _I’ll save him, even if it kills me!_ I wrapped my hands around his, which were cold and clammy, and felt the pull of magic flow into him. Although this time it felt different, it felt as if the magic was coming directly from me instead of channeling it from the earth. My hands gave off a soft golden glow and I watch in unbridled happiness as color began to reveal itself in his face. My concentration was broken when I heard a series of terrified barks and the sharp pain of teeth sinking into my ankle. I whipped my eyes open and saw the reason for Lupus's panic, deep cracks were webbing across my fingertips and taking over my hand. I held out my hands in front of me and watched as the cracks began to slowly withdraw, _I guess that’s what happens when I use magic without the necklace._

            “What the hell do you think you’re doing!” Doctor Mendez cried out behind me. She grabbed my shoulder again and whipped me around, anger filled her eyes, “You’re going to kill yourself!”

            “Good!” I screamed back, “It’s my fault that they’re all dead! You can sit there and tell me it’s not my fault but I know you don’t mean it!” My voice was emotional and trembling as my grief poured out, “Their blood is on my hands and there’s nothing I can do about it!”

 Doctor Mendez, in a shocking twist, pulled me into a tight hug and held me as I violently sobbed into her shoulder. She softly stroked my hair as we rocked gently like a mother trying to soothe her injured child. 

            “Katya,” Doctor Mendez whispered, “Could you please go inform Reyna that he’s awake?” 

            With a nod, Katya let go of a riled-up Lupus and exited the tent. Lupus quickly bounded over to me and began to furiously lick my hand, as if he was saying sorry for biting me. I ran my fingers through his fur, which was oddly therapeutic. Doctor Mendez held me for many minutes until she pushed me away gently. I saw the soft drips of tears drip down her face as she used her thumb to wipe off my face.

            “I know it’s hard,” She started, “But because of you, my brother died a hero, and his sacrifice ensured that even more demigods came out unscathed”

            “Your brother?" I asked, deep within her eyes I could see a mixture of pride and anguish fighting for control 

            “Terry Mendez” She responded, pulling out a small locket from under her coat. She opened it with a soft click and inside sat a picture of the same messy haired boy I met at the tunnel. Freckles danced across his face as a wide smile revealed a missing tooth.  Standing next to him, smiling into the camera, was a younger Doctor Mendez, both of them were standing in front of a large monument, “He was in the Second Cohort with Charles”

            “I’m sorry” was all I could say, it was my fault that her brother was taken from her

 "It's not your fault. If I blamed myself for every death that occurred in this tent than I would've been in the Underworld a long time ago" 

 "It's just," I said, trying to resist the urge to cry again, "If we hadn't told him to stay behind and heal the wounded campers then he could’ve been with the others, he could’ve had a chance to survive!”

            “You need to stop that,” She said, grabbing my hands, “You need to stop thinking you’re some miracle worker, you might be able to use magic but you can’t play god!”

            “And how would you know?” I spat

 "Because there's only so much one can heal with ambrosia and nectar," She said, leaning in close, her voice low and intimidating

            My response was interrupted by a series of choking noises coming the bed Charles was in. In a panic Doctor Mendez shot up and rushed to his side, she quickly pressed a series of buttons on the ventilator and within a few minutes, the tubes were removed from his mouth. With a series of hard coughs Charles was soon sitting upright, his gaunt face being illuminated by the sun as he ran his hand through his short blonde hair. He pressed his hand to his head in pain while Doctor Mendez gave him a small cup of nectar. After he adjusted to his surrounded his eyes caught mine and gave a weak grin.

            “I guess I owe you that drink after all” Charles said with a deep southern drawl that I just noticed

 "Well you're going to need one" Doctor Mendez said handing him a cup of brown liquid

            “Wait, isn’t it illegal for minors to be drinking?” I questioned

            “In the mortal world, sure, but in Camp Jupiter, not so much," Charles said with a grimace as he chugged the whole thing in one go, "Let's just cut the crap, who bit the dust early?"

 "Always the straight shooter," Doctor Mendez sighed, she reached over and refilled his glass before grabbing a chair and filling her own, "Everyone but you, unfortunately" 

 "Then I shall drink in their honor," Charles said, raising his glass

            “Are you not upset?” I asked confused, “They were your friends!”

 "Sure, I'm upset, I'm heartbroken," Charles said, taking a sip from his drink "But that's the life of a demigod and I know they'd hate me for shedding tears over them. So instead I do what they would've done, I drink and remember the good times, and when my time comes I'll meet them in the Elysian fields and we'll be brothers once again!" 

            “Spoken like a true legionnaire!” Doctor Mendez said, raising her glass and taking a sip

            “So, Bartholomew, you mind telling me what happened out there?” Charles said, sitting his cup on his bedside table

            “What do you mean?” I questioned

            “You know, the whole thing where you managed to organize scattered cohorts to push the Monsters into the center while you and Katya jumped right into the fray?”

            “I guess I just did what came naturally?” I was rather intimidating by his calm demeanor, it reminded of my dad right before he’d get angry. My heart pinged at the thought of my father, It was hard not knowing if he was alive or not. Sure, he wasn’t exactly the best and he might’ve been absent most of my life, but he kept me alive and kept food on the table.

            “So, it’s natural for you to keep a level head amidst chaos and to command a whole army of teenagers?” Charles pressed

            “I don’t know” I answered honestly, “I was just following all the strategies my father taught me. We were vastly outnumbered and fighting them one on one wasn’t working. I thought that if we managed to form a wall we could at least drive them back and away from camp while also killing the ones that got too close with the spears. Since we had Calvary we could ensure that a flank attack wasn’t possible. Along with your group putting pressure on them from behind, it allowed us to catch them off guard, they got pushed into a corner and they started to lose the upper hand. Since Katya and I weren’t in the active formation we were able to head straight in and chop them down while they were panicking”

            “Impressive” Charles said with a soft whistle, “If it were up to me I’d make you Centurion on the spot, rules be damned!”

            “Centurion?” I asked, “What’s that?”

 "It's kind of like a manager," Doctor Mendez said, "Typically there's two per cohort, which is like a big group of Demigods, and they ensure everything is running smoothly. If someone messes up, they usually answer to their Centurion, if the Centurion messes up the answer to the Praetor"

            “So, wait,” I tilted my head, confused, “You said there’s ‘typically’ two, do you mean that there are missing spots?”

 "Of course," Doctor Mendez said, her voice was odd, as if she was uncomfortable with the topic, "Up until a few years ago we had an abundance of Demigods, over 200, but after recent events, we'd be lucky to have enough to fill a whole Cohort" 

            “So why don’t you just fill those spots?” I asked, confused about this predicament

            “If only it were that simple” Charles said in a mocking tone, “Becoming a Centurion isn’t as simple as just asking for it, it’s something you’ve got to earn. Unless your Michael Finch, then you just buy your way in”

            “Who?” I asked again, becoming increasingly confused

 "Yeah, Centurion of the Second Cohort" Doctor Mendez chimed in, "He was vying for that position for years after the previous one retired he used daddy's money to bribe a few members of the Senate so he'd get a promotion"  
 "I feel bad for that young Russian girl that came in a few weeks ago," Charles said, lamenting 

            “Do you mean Katya?” Doctor Mendez questioned, pouring herself another glass, "Light skin, big nose, gives off the stressed-out businesswoman vibe?"  

            “That’s the one!” Charles said excitedly with a snap of his finger

            “Strange of you to pity anyone Charles, why the sudden change of heart?” Doctor Mendez said with a laugh

            “Yeah, but I pity anyone who has to deal with Centurion Bitch for most of the day," Charles said with a smug smile over his wordplay

            “What’d he do to make everyone hate him so much?” I asked, interested in the drama

            “Well for starters, he talks down to everyone and acts like he the Gods gift to the Camp” Charles grabbed his drink and took a few sips before continuing, “Always goes on about these crazy conspiracy theories and plays on the fears of the other campers to turn on people he doesn't like. Somehow manage to turn most of the camp against Katya before Hazel and Reyna caught wind of it and put a stop to it. After that, he made her his assistant so he could boss her around and harass her in the background"

            “And no one’s put a stop to it?” I could feel my body tense up in fury, sure I didn’t exactly know her and didn’t exactly understand why she elicited such extreme emotions, but I knew no one deserves that, “Why not move her to a different cohort? Or get him removed from his position?”

            “I would if I could, but as the Centurion of the Third Cohort it’s not my place to bring it into question," Charles said, shrugging his shoulders, "If it were up to me I'd have him booted from the legion and barred from entering Camp ever again"

 "Then I guess it's lucky for me that no one cares what you think," Said a nasally voice behind me before I could voice my shock to Charles sudden revelation. I turned towards the entrance and standing in the doorway of the tent was a rather greasy looking individual. His golden armor shone brightly in the direct sunlight, a stark contrast to the dark purple shirt under it. Heavily armored sandals ran up the length of his shin, only leaving a small gap between his lower thigh. He looked like a frail kid with an obsession for the Roman military who cosplays in officer armor to feel important.  Standing beside him was Katya, who averted her eyes when my eyes locked on to hers. For the small moment that I caught her eyes, I could feel my heart rate increase, the image of her soft blue eyes locked into my mind. _God, what is wrong with me_ I berated myself, _your mom shows you one little clip without context and your suddenly obsessed! Come on Me, you’re better than this!_

 "Nice of you to drop by," Charles said mockingly, "Hope you didn't come all this way for little ol’ me!”

            “Hardly,” Centurion Finch scoffed, "I came for that one," he said pointing at me with his long, bony finger. “Bartholomew, come with me, you have a lot to answer for. I’ll meet you outside in five minutes, Katya you come along as well, you both have a lot to explain”

            With a loud huff, I walked around to my hospital bed and drew the curtain so that I could change out of the gown. I reached for my bag and pulled out the first things I saw. I ended up with a long-sleeved cotton shirt, dark gray pants held up by black suspenders, and gray dress boots. I rolled up the sleeves of my white shirt to help cool off in the heat and brushed out my hair, which had grown rather long. I reached into my bag and pulled out a hairbow and put my hair in a quick ponytail while letting my bangs fall free. I pulled back the curtain and was quickly met with laughter from Charles.

            “I want to go to whatever party you’re going to, man!” He giggled violently like a schoolgirl

            “Can it, I’m assuming I’m about to meet the head honcho, so I might as well look somewhat formal!” I retorted, embarrassed

            “Sorry, but you look like a grandpa!” He held up his hands defensively just in case I threw something at him, "Don't sweat it, Reyna looks intimidating and is intimidating, but as long as you don't mouth off and know your place you'll be fine!"

            “You say that, but I doubt it’ll be that simple," I said with a worried groan

 "It's alright Bartholomew," Doctor Mendez said soothingly, which threw me off as it was the first time she said my name, "She told she just wanted to go over the events of what happened, after that, you'll be officially welcomed to Camp Jupiter. Until then, you'll want to leave that bag with me, the Fauns get sticky fingers from time to time" 

            I handed my bag over to Doctor Mendez, slightly amazed that it stayed in one piece during the battle. I said my goodbyes and agreed to stick around when I came to get my back so Charles wouldn’t get lonely. As I was about to leave I was surprised when Doctor Mendez pulled me to the side, peaking over my shoulder to make sure Charles wasn’t listening.

            “Hey, Bartholomew, I know this is a lot to ask but could you do me a favor?” She sounded concerned

 "You can just call me Barry," I said, lowering my tone to match hers, "But what's this favor?" 

            “Barry, keep an eye on Katya," Doctor Mendez said quietly, "She practically refused to leave your bedside the whole week you were out"

            “A week!” I sputtered, “I was out a whole week?”  
            “That’s not important Barry” Doctor Mendez scolded, “She helped you and now you owe her, it’s the least you could do!”

            With a soft push, Doctor Mendez forced me out of the tent with Lupus at my heels, hopping around excitedly and barking about how he and Katya became friends over the past couple of days, begging me to thank her for him. For a small puppy who's already had multiple run-ins' with fatal situations, he was awfully polite. I found Centurion Finch and Katya standing not too far away in front of a row of charred tents that were being worked on by a group of demigods. In front of them was Reyna, the Demigod who landed in front of me after the battle. She was barking orders and asking about the status of how things were coming along at the small group of Demigods hammering away on scaffolds. I looked around noticed that there was a new gate to replace the one that was blasted to bits, now featuring heavy plates of the same metal that was in my father’s workshop lining the wall. My attention was quickly drawn to the sour look Reyna was giving Centurion Finch, someone she must’ve been less than enthused to be talking to. He was motioning wildly and aggressively as if he was attempting to play a game of charades with her. As I approached I began to tap into the general gist of their conversation, it had something to do with me and he was really pushing for execution.

 "That's not what I'm saying, Reyna!" He squealed, "I'm saying we can't trust him! What if he's responsible for the monster attack, it seems awfully convenient that he's some sort of Monster slaying machine that shows up just as hundreds of Monsters start attacking!" 

            “Enough Centurion Finch!” Reyna roared, her voice commanding authority, “I refuse to let any more blood spill on this land until I’m sure it’s necessary! He may be a sorcerer, but I’ll be damned if I let another demigod die in this camp!”

            “But Reyna, what if he’s a spy sent here destroy the camp and kill us all!” His voice was high pitched and whiny

            “If that’s the case” I interjected with a cruel sneer, “Then I’ll be sure to start with you first”

            I stared Centurion Finch in the eyes, channeling every single last bit of intimidation I could muster in order scare him. A slight grin spread across Reyna’s face as my comment but it was quickly replaced with a stern look while Katya made a pained look of suppressing laughter behind her.

            “Why your little impudent brat!” Centurion Finch cried, “I’ll have your body dragged behind a Unicorn for that!”

            Centurion Finch clutched the front of my shirt and pulled me in close, our nose inches away from each other. His face was rough and gaunt, long greasy hair spilled off his head like a waterfall of oil. His breath smelled faintly of garlic, which was probably because it seemed like he hasn’t brushed his teeth in months. I stood my ground, un-phased by his poor attempt of enforcing authority. Even though I wanted nothing more than to give him a very painful death, I knew that it would only cause more problems. That, and the fact that my necklace was nowhere to be found, which I hoped was being kept safe somewhere.

 "Miss Reyna," I asked, refusing to break eye contact, "What's the punishment of attacking an unarmed demigod?" 

 "Well, considering one is a superior officer and thus held to higher standards, I'd say immediate discharge would be in order," Reyna said with a tired voice as if she was tired of Centurion Finch's behavior

 "You see, Centurion," I said, making a soft click with my tongue, "You might want to rethink your poor attempt at intimidation, or this scary little traitor might end up taking your position!" 

 With a furious growl, he let me go with a hard push as he stormed away. Katya was trying her best to stifle laughter while Reyna was slowly rubbing her temples. 

 "Between him and the repairs, it's amazing I'm able to keep my sanity" Reyna muttered 

            “Is he really that bad?” I questioned, trying to stay on her good said with small talk

 "Enough," Reyna said, holding up her hand, "As much as I hate to admit it, Centurion Finch is right, we don't know whose side you're on and that means keeping outside contact to a minimum. After I finish up here we’re heading straight to the senate house for questioning”

 "That's fair," I said, shrugging my shoulders, "How about a peace offering until then, a sign of good faith”

            “And what exactly would this peace offering entail?” Reyna questioned suspiciously 

            “A giant wooden horse to show that I mean no harm” I joked, hoping that it would be enough to lighten the mood, unfortunately, Reyna took it a little too seriously

            “How dare you mock us like that!” Reyna boomed, reaching for her sword

 "Jesus!" I yelled, "It was a joke, I didn't think you'd take it that seriously!"

            “You’re in no positions to make jokes Cooperman!” Reyna said, her face red and flustered

 "I'm sorry, I didn't know you'd react like that!" I put my hands up defensively, ready to die and found it quite odd that a Trojan Horse joke would be the thing to do me in   o

            “You’re on thin ice, you better pick your next words carefully” Her voice was bold and intimidating, the voice of a leader

            “Ok, but really, I do have a peace offering in mind!” I methodically vetted each word that escaped my mouth, “I can repair the camp, but I’ll need my necklace, and since I’m assuming you’re the head honcho, I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you have it, because it wasn’t in my bag and it wasn’t on me!”

            “I’m not a fool, I know sorcerers and I know that they’re not to be trusted!” She spat

 "I promise if you give me the necklace I can repair the camp way faster than they can!" I said cautiously pointing to the demigods that were on the scaffolds, “If you think I’m up to any funny business then I have no doubt you’d skewer first and ask questions later!”

            “And what?” Reyna growled, “You pass out again? Fat chance!”

            “Look, I get that my track record is less than stellar, but give me a chance” I could feel my chance at redemption slipping away, “If I use chronomancy I should be ok, Lupa and I found that it takes less of a toll on my body”

 "And how would chronomancy help in this situation?" Reyna said I could hear the slight sound of consideration in her voice

            “I can use the amulet to channel the mist in order to rewind or fast-forward the state of most non-living items" I sputtered, "I'll be able to essentially rewind the state of the camp to right before the attack happened, saving time and resources! I promise I'll give it back afterward!" 

 After many moments of consideration, Reyna reached behind her and withdrew my amulet from a small pouch secured to her waist. She slowly passed it to me, as if she was handling a deadly weapon. As soon as my hand wrapped around it I could feel the power of the mist flow into me, drawing me up on a second wind. Reyna ordered the demigods on the scaffolds climb down and began to set up a radius to ensure no one got hurt. I pulled the amulet over my head and let it rest around my neck, something that strangely made me feel safe. I took a deep breath as I felt the mist flow into my necklace as I got down on my knees. I placed my hands firmly on the ground and began imagining a large clock in front of me, slowly ticking forward. Using an intense amount of willpower, I forced the clock to rewind, ticking quicker and quicker in reverse, the hour hand and the minute hand spinning around furiously. Below me, the shimmering illusion of a large clock face appeared under the entirety of the camp, rewinding like the one in my imagination.

 It was like someone hit rewind on a VHS tape as the camp begin to quickly reform itself. Burnt and tattered tents flapped around violently as the rebuilt themselves from their ashes. They quickly sprung into a brilliant blaze before being extinguished again as claw marks began to stitch themselves together. A tornado of wood chips, ash, and other building materials slowly retook their original form as the glory of the Camp shined through. Soon, a ground of demigods had gathered and watched in amazement as their camp quickly rebuilt itself. A few minutes later everyone was staring at a series of pristine tents ready to house them. With a series of cheers and pats on the back, I knew I had achieved the support of the camp. I slowly rose to my feet, winded at my display, but was pleased to see a smiling Katya clapping behind enthusiastically behind an impressed Reyna. 

            “How’s that for a peace offering?” I said cockily, removing my necklace and handing to Reyna

            “I have to admit that I’m impressed, and I thank you for repairing the camp, "She said coolly, slipping my necklace into her pouch, “But I still don’t trust you”

            Reyna turned on her heel and began marching through camp, seemingly inspecting every little detail. Groups of Demigods began to excitedly rush to their tent, possibly rushing to their personal rooms. A missing sense of life seemed to be revived as well as demigods began to rush wildly around, tearing down the scaffolding and trying to figure out what to do next. I watched in amusement as campers rushed out of the tent with a wide grin, excited to have a proper bed again.

            “That was very impressive” I heard a soft voice say in choppy English

            “Oh, you think so?” I said, my face turning even redder than hers

            “You just solved a weeks’ worth of stress for Reyna, she might not have said it but I’m sure she’s thankful!” Katya’s eyes were kind and bursting with happiness, but deep down I could see a hidden pain. Reyna beckoned us to follow her down a long winding path that leads towards a rather large city. Katya and I quickly caught up and we followed slowly behind her as Katya gave me a general rundown of camp operations as best as she could. She explained how Cohorts work, general day to day life, and war games.

            “Wait, whoa," I said, flustered by the new information, "So you're telling me that you have an elephant that you use to siege a fortress?"

            “Yeah!” She squealed excitedly, “His name is Hannibal! He usually comes out when we play Siege!”

            “I’ve got to get in on that!” I said, excited at the prospect of storming a fortress with an Elephant by my side

            As we walked Katya continued to explain life at camp as best she could. We watched in amusement as Lupus bounded around playfully, scaring off the Fauns that were on the path with us. Lupus doubled back and jumped at us playfully while barking about the strange goatmen and their skittish behavior.

            “I’m going to go out on a limb and say that he’s yours?” Katya said, laughing as Lupus tried to pounce on a butterfly that was flying past

            “I guess” I replied, shrugging my shoulders, “I was leaving the Wolf House when the wolves suddenly turned on him. I fought them off and we ended up here”

            “He was a rather persistent thing, I’ll give him that much” Katya said, picking him in order to stop him from attacking any more Fauns, "He suddenly showed in the middle of camp, caused quite the uproar" 

            “What?” I said in surprise, “They must’ve really been on edge if they’d let something so little cause so much ruckus!”

            “We were a little jumpy, yes, but luckily the Fourth Cohort solved it, said it must’ve been a sign from the gods”

            “How so?”

            “The Fourth Cohort’s symbol is a wolf, it wasn’t such a stretch for them to think it was their chance to shine”

            “And what happened after?”

            “Well, they gave him some food and water but he almost immediately sniffed you out and refused to leave your side”

 "Sounds like someone else I heard about," I said slyly 

            “What do you mean by that?”

            “I heard through the grapevine that someone was keeping Lupus company the whole time I was out”

            “And so what, maybe that person was worried?” Katya said, blushing furiously

 "There's no need to be embarrassed about it," I said, trying to console her as best as I could, "Not many people would do that, much less for a person they don't even know. So thank you.”

            “Don’t mention it” Katya mumbled, clearly embarrassed

            “Oh!” I said, slapping my fist into my palm, “There was another thing! Lupus wanted me to thank you for spending time with him!”

            “Aww!,” Katya squealed, holding Lupus up, his tail wagging furiously. She spent several moments rubbing her nose against his, “But wait, how would you know if he wants to thank me?”

            “Well I can kind of understand him” I replied, hoping that she didn’t think I was some sort of lunatic, “Like I hear him bark and I can sort of ‘understand’ what he means”

            “That’s so cool!” Katya said, her eyes wide in amassment, “I wish I could talk to animals! Do you know why you can understand him?”

 "I just sort of assumed it was something from my mom," I said, trying to figure out if there were any more possibilities, "She mentioned that all of her children have a natural attunement to most animals"

            “So you’ve actually met your godly parent?” Katya said, “You’re so lucky!”

            “Wait, you haven’t met yours?” I asked in shock

            “No,” Katya said, her eyes dimmed with sadness, “I’ve been hoping to, but so far she’s been silent”

            “Is that something that’s common amongst the gods?”

 "It seems so, most of the other campers here don't know who made them either, so I guess it isn't all that bad," Katya said, seemingly trying to put a positive spin on the situation

            “Alright you two,” Reyna said, stopping in front of us, “We’re about to enter New Rome, remember to be respectful. And please, do me a favor and just cooperate with Terminus, it’ll make this a whole lot smoother!”

            "I'm sorry, who?" I asked, standing slack-jawed, amazed by the sheer size of the city that appeared before me. It compared nothing to the tents I just left, in comparison, they were like tiny napkins. A beautiful wall was erected in front of me, is glowing white walls radiating a sense of pristine nobility. Red tiled roofs sprawled forth as a crowd of people milled about. Groups of demigods, adults, and children all walked up and down the paved streets, looking happy with their lives. I yearned for a life like that, one with happiness and stability, I'd even deal with the monster attacks if it meant I could have that. Although, I was debating whether or not that would be a good thing when I saw an angry statue screaming at a large, baby-faced Chinese man.


	5. We Live For the Legion, By the Legion

It’s time for an author’s note! I feel it’s worth mentioning that this chapter is setting a lot of things up that will come around soon, so I’m sorry if the focus seems to be a bit off. A good chunk of it comes from the fact that I’m still trying to figure out how to write Katya, so despite this chapter being from her POV, it’s a lot more hands-off as I don’t want to set up personality traits that won’t ever show up again. Lastly, I feel that there will be people who disagree with certain things that I’m doing with the parentage and abilities of my OC’s, and all I can say is to just hear it out. I’m not going to make my characters into typical Mary Sue’s and there will be reasons and explanations for certain plot related things. Also, I’m sorry about this chapter being late, some life things got in the way and I was behind schedule! That’s about all I’ve got, I’d appreciate it if you’d leave a review if you’re inclined to do so but just by reading the chapter you’re doing more than enough!

Chapter V

We Live For the Legion, By the Legion

KATYA

 

            The face Bartholomew made when confronted by the oddity of terminus was simply divine. He stood there, slack-jawed as Terminus was seemingly screaming about something or another. Visible confusion had quickly taken over him, it was cute in a dorky way. It took Barry several seconds to replace his confusion with a soft smile. My mind raced back to the battlefield as imagines of his caring smile loomed over me. My heart thumped harder at the thought, a rush of blood turned my cheeks a nice rosy color. _Jeez! Are my standards so low that I fall for any old dope who shows me an ounce of kindness!_ I scathed myself, not wanting to believe it. But it was undeniable, even Mrs. Mendez could see, but I guess spending all your free time next to a coma patient is a pretty good indicator. I didn’t understand it, but I felt responsible for him. Responsible for his safety, to see him grow, the yearn to be by his side. _Maybe this is what having a crush feels like?_ The idea of having a crush was foreign to me, to say the least. After I was forced to that small village, my life seemed to revolve around surviving, I hardly had any time to think about unimportant things, much less the idea of a future.

            “So, uh, who’s that?” Bartholomew said, leaning in close to me. He smelled nice, like freshly mowed grass right before a rainstorm. My face lit up in embarrassment as my heart seemed to speed up fast enough to power a whole city!

            “ _Come on Katya!”_ I scolded myself internally, “ _You just spent the last ten minutes having a normal conversation with him. Sure, you might’ve stammered a lot, and messed up your grammar, but I doubt he noticed! Just play it cool and calm down!_ ”

            “Hello?” Barry cooed softly, waving his hand in front of my face, snapping me back to reality “Is anyone in there?”

            “That’s Terminus!” I squeaked, pointing at the statue, who know had a large vein carved into his temples

            “Impressive” Barry said with a soft whistle, “At my old school we didn’t have talking statues”

            “Enough” Reyna snapped, “Just keep to yourself, it seems my colleague is already in enough trouble and we don’t need your subpar allusions to children’s work making worse”

            “Ma’am yes ma’am” Barry conceded, holding his hands up as a sign of backing down.

            “Just a word of warning,” I said quietly, trying to stop him from seeming my beet red face “If Terminus starts talking about how he’s going to choke you, please just play along”

            With a soft nod from Bartholomew, our little group approached Praetor Zhang, who was looking rather flustered. His short hair was rather disheveled, heavy bags had appeared over his eyes ever since the attacks as stubble began to take root on his face. No one wanted to admit it, but Frank had taken the attack very hard. It had left the camp in shambles, they spent the first day just cleaning up the bodies and dumping the monster dust into the Little Tiber. After that, Frank and everyone else either began rebuilding or trying to figure out how the monsters managed to make it into camp. Now it seems that Frank is trying to figure out how to deal with Terminus, which is not going very well.

            “Terminus, please, just listen!” Frank moaned in exhaustion

            “No, Praetor, you listen!” Terminus snapped back, “Because of this attack my whole existence has been out of whack! Do you know how many people have tried taking weapons into New Rome because of what happened!”

            “And I’m sorry, no one could’ve predicted this!” Frank pleaded

 "Enough! I know you've received reports of the Mist failing, I could've told you that much!" Terminus screamed, "You should've known that the Mist is the thing keeping this place hidden, no Mist means monsters know where we are!" 

            “Do you feel that Praetor!” Terminus screamed, wagging his head wildly, “Do you feel my hands as they crash across your cheek for your incompetence!”

            “Terminus, please, I’m just trying to make sure the Pomerian Line will continue to be guarded!” Frank was practically on his hands and knees at this point

            “Of course, it will! Who do you think I am?” Terminus said, offended by the accusation that he wouldn’t do his job

 "You care to give me the summary of all this?" Bartholomew said, trying to remain unheard by the angry slab of marble

            “Well you see, Terminus is the god of boundaries. He spends his time protecting New Rome, it’s a sort of city for demigods. Typically, he just prevents people from bringing in things that could put the population at risk, like weapons for instance” I explained, trying my best not to mess up my words, “After the monster attack, Terminus began to get really agitated as monsters had gotten to close and so he’s blaming Frank and Reyna for it”

            “So, wait, let me get this straight” Bartholomew said, “You had a God right up the street, yet he couldn’t hobble down the street to lend a hand?”

            “I wouldn’t put it like that” I responded, noting an increased look of agitation spreading across his face, “Terminus must’ve been trying to protect New Rome. But we should just stand by and let Frank handle it, Terminus becomes really scary if you make him mad enough!”

            But it was too late, Bartholomew was already heading towards the agitated God, about to give him a piece of his mind.

            “Excuse me!” Bartholomew said, interrupting Terminus’s rather impressive string of offensive words, “But where do you get off on verbally abusing someone who’s just doing their job?”

            “And who do you think you are!” Terminus said after a few seconds of shocked silence, his voice rough and quiet

            “I am Bartholomew Cooperman, Child of Hecate” Bartholomew’s voice was deep and passionate, nothing like the indifferent and tired voice that I heard on the battlefield. His voice seemed to harbor a strange sense of cockiness and pride that reverberated in the air, “And you are a hunk of stone that’s blaming someone for something you did nothing to prevent!”

            “How dare you!” Terminus said, seething, “I’ll have you know that I’m the only reason that no monsters encroached into New Rome! What did you do?”

            “I was the one who rallied everyone together!” Bartholomew barked, Lupus, feeling Bartholomew’s agitation, began to growl and bark at the statue, “I was the one that helped defend the camp! While you were up here watching other people fight, we were down on the battlefield!”

            “And what does that matter!” Terminus screamed as Frank tried to intervene, but ultimately failed, “I was doing my job!”

            “Your job is to defend New Rome, is it not?” Bartholomew quipped, practically nose to nose with Terminus, “Is it too much to ask that you hop your way down and protect the rest of camp? It sure would’ve been helpful to have a god fighting with us as we watched other people getting slaughtered! But what do I know, it’s not like you have arms or legs!

            A collective gasp echoed amongst everyone present. Slowly, we all began to back up as Terminus began to vibrate, except poor Bartholomew. I wanted to warn him, but deep down I knew he needed to learn that there are just some things that shouldn’t be said.

 "How dare you," Terminus said, his voice quiet but full of wrath 

            “What was that!” Bartholomew said, holding his hand up to his ear in a mocking manner, “I couldn’t hear you over the sound of your excuses! Maybe Charles’s friends would still be alive if you hadn’t been such a crappy God!”

 "I said, how dare you!" Terminus boomed, an explosion of energy forced itself from Terminus, sending Bartholomew flying backward, causing him to crash hard onto his back.  

 "Alright Terminus, that's enough!" Reyna said, regaining her composure, "You to Bartholomew, least I remind you that you're still on thin ice"

            Bartholomew, instead of responding, let out a soft groan and gave a weak thumbs-up. Lupus quickly trotted over to Bartholomew and began to lick his face.

            “Fine!” Terminus spat, “At least we have one leader who knows how to command people!”

            “Good, we’ll sort this out later, until then I’ll have to ask you to refrain from attacking our guests!” Reyna said, walking towards Bartholomew

            She quickly pulled a dazed Bartholomew to his feet and dusted him off with a small smirk. This was rather an oddity for Reyna as she’s rarely smiled as far as anyone was concerned. Reyna quickly escorted him past Terminus, who refused to make eye contact. Lupus, who was rather brave for a puppy, attempted to hike a leg on Terminus but was quickly dissuaded after a series of small explosion spooked him. I quickly followed behind them, catching up to Frank as Reyna was scolding Bartholomew for his actions. 

 "It was like a nuclear blast just inches from my face," Bartholomew said, coming to terms with his mortality

            “Well, that’s what you get for trying to call out a God” Reyna countered without sympathy, “I understand how you feel, the Gods are rather absent most of the time, but it would not be wise to anger them when they do appear”

 "It's a very bad idea," Frank said as if speaking from experience

            “What even made you think that it was a good idea?” Reyna asked, her voice calm but confused

 "I don't know," Bartholomew said truthfully, "I guess it just irked me that the statue was trying to put all the blame on you two, but refused to acknowledge that he could've easily helped" 

            “That’s fair, but Terminus does have a point” Frank muttered, “It’s our job to defend the camp, we had reports that the mist was failing and that the camp could be in danger, but we never took them seriously enough to beef up patrols, and look what it cost”

 "I think you're being a little too hard on yourself," Reyna said, trying to console frank, "Like you said, none of us could’ve predicted that an attack of this magnitude could’ve happened”

            “But the point still stands Reyna!” Frank said, the agitation in his voice causing him to be even more intimidating, yet Reyna seemed indifferent, “How many lives could we have saved if we had just taken a little more care!”

            “Enough Frank!” Reyna snapped back, “If you haven’t noticed, we’re in the middle of New Rome! If you want to complain like a child at least do me the courtesy of doing it inside of my office! Until then, keep it to yourself as I doubt anyone wants to grieve even more over their lost family members!”

            "But!" Frank began to retort but quickly collected himself with a deep exhale, "You're right. I'm sorry, I guess my nerves are finally getting to me" 

            For the remainder of the walk, everyone was unusually quiet, even Bartholomew. Although there were times he'd let a small gasp of amazement slip out every time a Faun would emerge from an alleyway or pop around a corner. Lupus, being the adventurous pup, was springing around wildly and taking in the new sights. Every so often a young child would run up pet him, or a street vendor would drop a little bit of food for him. It wasn't long before we found ourselves at the foot of a large ornate building capped with a glittering gold roof. Long columns held up a flat slab above them, forming a rather large marble porch. We quickly ascended the stairs and pushed past a group of concerned adults over the recent attack as a helpless secretary tried to calm them down. We hooked a hard left down a long, well-lit corridor and we found ourselves in a rather nice office. A black leather couch sat against a back wall surrounded by a few plants and a table with a stack of old magazines. In the center of the room sat a small fountain with a rainbow cascading off It. In front of it sat two black leather chairs as a large chestnut desk loomed over them, large stacks of paper sat nice and neat in small cubbies. A large TV was hung from the wall over a large fireplace that was playing the recent news. Sitting next to the fireplace on two separate dog beds were Reyna's faithful hounds, Aurum and Argentum, eying Lupus suspiciously. With a wave of Reyna's hand, she motioned us to sit. Bartholomew eased himself into a chair and began to fidget nervously, it was almost like he was a child waiting to get chewed out by the principal. Frank began to sit down on the couch but was quickly stopped by Reyna.

 "It's ok Frank," She said, "I can handle this alone. You go home and get some rest, I bet Hazel would be delighted"

            “But!” Frank protested

 "No, Frank," Reyna said, stopping him with a raised hand, "I can handle this alone, you've been pushing yourself too hard lately" 

            “Reyna, I’m fine,” Frank said, “This kid might be our chance to figure out what’s happening!”

 "I know, that's why I'm going to question him while you go home," Reyna said, losing her patience 

            “I don’t know man,” Bartholomew spoke up, “But I think you should listen to her”

            Something was strange about how he said his words, it felt more like a command than a suggestion. In an odd way, I felt compelled to follow his order and to listen to whatever Reyna said, but It was more like an odd nagging at the back of my head.

            “Maybe your right,” Frank agreed, cupping his head in hands, “I have been pushing myself a little too hard”

 "Exactly," Reyna said, glaring at Bartholomew, "Just go home, spend time with Hazel, and rest. I'll fill you in on everything tomorrow"

            “Right, I guess I’ll see everyone tomorrow!” Frank said, picking himself off the couch and leaving, closing the heavy door with a loud thud

 "So, Bartholomew" Reyna began, hanging her sword up behind her, "You want to start with what you just did? Just a word of warning, if you lie, my little puppies will rip you to shreds"

 "I'll keep that in mind," Bartholomew said with a worried smile, "Lupa taught me how to do it, she calls it Charmspeak”

 "I know what it is Bartholomew, I want to know why you used it on a superior officer," Reyna said, her voice now full of professionalism 

            “Right,” Bartholomew stuttered, his face turning a deep shade of red, “I guess he reminded me of my father a little bit, someone who would end up working himself to death because he refused to slow down. So, I made him a little more inclined to take you up on your offer”

            “Mhm," Reyna said, lowering herself onto her chair, “Just don’t make it a habit or trouble will come from it”

 "Yes ma'am," Bartholomew said quietly, clearly intimidated by the aura Reyna was giving off

            “So, I take it you knew your father well?” Reyna probed

            “Not really,” Bartholomew admitted, “After I became old enough to work a microwave he became somewhat distant”     

            “Really?” Reyna said in amusement, occasionally glancing at her dogs as if she was expecting them to spring into action at any second

 "He'd usually only drop by the house once or twice a week but eventually it became once or twice a month," Bartholomew said, bitterness seemed to taint his memories

            “Interesting,” Reyna said, becoming troubled that the dogs were seemingly more interested in Lupus than ripping Bartholomew apart, “What about your mother?”

 "Well, I just met her a month or so ago, so I guess she's the reigning champ of absent parental figures in my life," Bartholomew said, trying to lighten the mood 

            “Your mother is Trivia, is it not?” Reyna said, leaning on her desk

            “Right, she pulled me into this weird dream state after Lupa attacked me," Bartholomew said

            “That’s interesting,” Reyna said, scribbling something down, “We’ve received many reports that Lupa and her pack were killing most of the demigods that passed through there, besides Katya, you’re the only one arrive at camp for the last couple of months. Any idea why that is?”

            “Oh, I think I know why!” Bartholomew said, his face lighting up

            “What, you do?” Reyna sputtered in shock

            “Yeah! My mom said that someone named Pasiphae had put a hex on them!” Bartholomew said, pleased that he could offer something useful

            “Pasiphae?” Reyna said, troubled by that stranger’s name, “Oh gods, we knew she wasn’t gone, but why is she showing her face now?”

 "I don't know, but my mom told me she had stolen something called the Grimoire of Creation," Bartholomew said, seemingly raking his brain for every piece of information

 "I've never heard of it" Reyna admitted, "But if anyone knows it'd be Chiron, but I'm getting ahead of myself. The reason why both of you are here today is that both of you did a great service to the legion" 

            My heart began to thump harder and harder, _Am I about to become a full member of the legion?_ My soul was elated, no longer would I be forced to do menial work!

            “What does that mean?” Bartholomew questioned

            “It means that you won’t have to suffer through _probatio_ and can go directly to being a legionnaire!” I squealed

            “That’s essentially it,” Reyna continued, “You’ll find that there are many benefits to not being on probation, although I do have to warn that it is a little painful”

 "Wait, what do you mean painful?" Bartholomew said but was cut short as he jumped up from his chair, startling the group of canines in the corner. He viciously began to rub his right forearm, as if he was trying to put out a fire, “What was that!”

            “That,” Reyna said with a smug smile, “Was your mother officially claiming you, allowing you to become a full member of the legion, go ahead, take a look!”

            “What the?” Bartholomew said, holding his arm in front of him. On his forearm was now the letters SPQR burned deeply into his skin. Above it was the sign of his mother, Trivia, a torch and a key crossing over each other. Strangely enough, there was a third symbol directly in the middle of the two, it looked like an odd hieroglyph with skull and bones, the same one Hazel had. Below the letters was a single line, showing his first year in the legion. I sat patiently, expecting my tattoo to appear at any second, I could hardly contain myself, but as seconds turned to minutes my stomach began to drop.

            “Wait?” Bartholomew said, “Why did I get one, but not Katya?”

            “I’m unsure,” Reyna said, “On one hand, it could just be the gods being slow, but it could be…”

            “It could be what!” I pleaded

            “It could be because you’re not a legacy like we all thought,” Reyna said, causing my hopes to rise

            “What’s a legacy?” Bartholomew said, tracing his finger over his new tattoo

            “You’re joking, right?” Reyna asked in surprise, “Didn’t your father tell you anything about Camp Jupiter?”

            “The man didn’t even tell me his name, what do you expect?” Bartholomew said as spite filled his voice

            “I swear, next time Harrison shows his face again I’m going to give him an earful!” Reyna said in exasperation, “He randomly drops by and tells me he has a secret kid, and now I’m finding out that he didn’t explain anything!”

            “Hold the phone, you knew my father?” Bartholomew said with renewed interest in the conversation, completely glossing over the fact that his father kept him a secret

            “Of course, he was one of our greatest Hunters. Harrison Jean Cooperman is the son of Pluto, the only one we knew of until Hazel showed up”

            “Son of Pluto?” Bartholomew said quietly to himself, “So I’m guessing that means I have the blood of two gods in me?”

            “Kind of,” Reyna said, “It’s more like you’re just descended from a particular god or goddess, most of the time it’s more of a status symbol”

            “Wait, that would mean that my mom slept with her nephew?” Bartholomew said, a look of disgust took over his face

            “It’s best if you don’t think about it” Reyna cautioned, “But more importantly, Katya, you’re a legacy of my mother, right?”

            “Ah, yes, my Grandfather was a son of Bellona, he was the one who wrote my letter of recommendation," I said, trying to deal with the rollercoaster of emotions that seemed to rage inside of me

 "If you were just a legacy then the symbol of Bellona should have appeared, but it seems your godly parent has yet to claim you," Reyna said, choosing her words carefully, "Until then, I regret to inform you that you will stay on probation until then. On the bright side, you can rest assured that you’re a demigod!”

 "That's fine," I said, trying not to let my true emotions show, "It has to happen eventually"

            “So how does my father play into this Hunter role?” Bartholomew said, trying to pull the conversation back to his father

 "Well your father was sort of a bounty hunter for the legion," Reyna said, "Hunters are retired members of the legion who take on bounties for monsters that normal campers can't handle"

            “You said Hunters, that means my father wasn’t the only one?” Bartholomew said, practically on the edge of his seat

            “Correct, currently we employ a total of 10 Hunters” Reyna continued, “Your Father is the current head of the group”

            “Nine,” Bartholomew muttered, grief filled his voice

 "Excuse me," Reyna said, her voice turning deathly serious, the tension in the room caused me to slide down in my chair 

            “Nine. You currently employ Nine Hunters” Bartholomew said, his hands held together in a tight ball that seemed to shake slightly

            “Bartholomew, you better explain what you mean this instant!” Reyna pressed

 "I don't know if he survived or not" Bartholomew choked on his voice, "You see, a monster attacked me at my school. She disguised herself as my history teacher, during lunch she started acting strangely. She cut open the wall and punctured the gas pipes, she started taunting us. Then she started looking for me, she said something about me not having a scent. She ended up killing a classmate before I did anything. Next thing I knew I was flying through the sky because she nuked the classroom. I managed to drag myself back to my house and my father was there. He was acting strange, at least more than usual, he was jumpy. I guess the monster tracked me down, my father told me to find Lupa. The last time I saw him he was getting ready to fight her, but by the time I made it to the edge of the woods she was already coming towards me”

            “What happened then?” Reyna said, trying to make sense of it all

 "I did what he told me," Bartholomew said, tears began to attack his eyes, "I ran" 

            “Can you describe the monster for me?” Reyna said, trying to find the slightest shred of hope, “Maybe he was about to fight it off and run like you did?”

 "She was tall, a lot taller than when she was a teacher," Bartholomew said, raking his brain for every detail, "Her head was on fire, and her legs were these weird mismatched things. One was like a goat or a horse, it was just shaggy and ended in a hoof. The other one was some sort of bronze prosthetic"

 "Oh gods," Reyna said, sinking into her chair, "That was the Empousa we sent him to take care of. We thought that if anyone could handle it alone it would’ve been him”

            “Well I guess we know how that played out” Bartholomew muttered sarcastically

 "I'm sorry Bartholomew," Reyna said, "I'll send a few Hunters out to recon the area, hopefully they’ll bring us good news”

            “So, what next?” Bartholomew said, trying to pull himself together, “Is there anything else we need to discuss?”

 "Well, there's the matter of your Cohort," Reyna said, "But we can worry about that later if you'd like"

            It hurt seeing him like this, it reminded me of myself not long after I arrived at Camp Jupiter. Suffering in silence as you mourned the loss of the life you had before, of the family you lost. I knew I couldn’t let someone else suffer like I did, it wouldn’t be right. I reached out and laid my hand gently on his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly. He quickly jerked his head towards me, his eyes were small and full of grief. A smile spread over my face in an attempt to console him. In my mind, I wished for him to find strength to draw upon, something to pull him out of the pit that he's found himself in. A small spark seemed to travel between us, it was slight, but it seemed to do the trick. He took a deep breath and a smile spread across his face, one of those kind smiles that seemed to radiate warmth. His eyes, ones that were previously dead and empty now seemingly began to fill with hope. Bartholomew turned to me, a mixture of relief and pride was spread across his face, a reassuring look that, in turn, filled me with strength as well. _What was that?_ I thought silently to myself, staring down at my hands.  

            "No, I'm fine, we can go ahead and figure it out," Bartholomew said sitting up straight, wiping the tears from his eyes

            “Right…” Reyna said, eyeing both of us suspiciously, “Anyway, since you’ve done a great deed to our legion that means you could easily make it into the Third Cohort, I think Charles would enjoy having someone like you around”

 "With all due respect," Bartholomew said, his voice now completely devoid of melancholy and now hosting a contagious confidence, "But if it's all the same, I'd like to request that I be placed in the Second Cohort"

            My heart skipped a beat, _why does he want to be placed in my Cohort!_ My mind began to wander through various fantasies. Spending our days at the docks at the lake, seeing movies at the Coliseum, we could even train together! _What am I thinking?_ I chastised myself, _I don’t even know him yet I’m acting like we’re already a couple?_

"I mean, it's certainly possible," Reyna said, shocked at his request, "But you do realize that Centurion Finch is in charge of that Cohort?”

            “I realize,” Bartholomew said his voice short and sweet, “But I made a promise to someone whom I owe a great debt”

            “Well, I can certainly get you into the Cohort, but it’ll require some legwork to make things go smoothly” Reyna said, pulling out a piece of paper and scribbling something down and gave it to Bartholomew, "You're going to need a letter of recommendation from someone to shut Centurion Finch up. This is the address for a man named Sampson Jefferson, he's your father's right-hand man. Go to him and tell him what you told me and ask him to send me a letter of recommendation"

            “And this will ensure I get a spot in the Second Cohort?” Bartholomew asked

            “It’d even ensure you a spot to the First Cohort if you were so inclined,” Reyna said with a sly smile before turning to me, “Katya, I hate to ask you this, but could you help Bartholomew find his way around?”

            “It’s fine, don’t worry about it” I stuttered in excitement, “I’d be delighted to!”

            “Wonderful” Reyna said with a smile, “I suppose I should inform Hazel, she didn’t know Harrison very well but it’s only right, they were kind of siblings after all. At least she’ll be happy to know that she’s an Aunt”

 "Well I suppose we'll be off," Bartholomew said, drawing himself to his full height, one that easily dwarfed me, "We should find this Sampson fellow before it gets too late, but before that, we ought to get some food!"   
            “I suppose so,” I said, following his lead, “If there’s anything else you need Reyna you’ll know where to find us”

 "Right, stay safe," Reyna said, grabbing a stack of paperwork and pulling it closer, "And this time Bartholomew, do everyone a favor and apologize to Terminus"

            “Yes ma’am,” Bartholomew groaned, seemingly displeased at the thought of sucking up to a statue, “Well then Katya, let’s go!”

           


	6. Cancellation Notice

Well, this hasn't been an easy decision to make, but it's one that I must make. Granted, the few chapters I posted didn't get very popular so it's not like it'll harm much. To keep it brief, I had big plans for Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation and I thought that people would enjoy it. Currently, there is a lot of stuff going on in my life that I need to dedicate my time to and unfortunately this isn't one of them. I'm sorry to the handful of people who read it up to this point, and I apologize to any future readers who stumble upon it and enjoyed it up until now. One of the biggest reasons for the cancellation was the simple fact that there were a lot of ideas that I had that would contradict with what was already established, so much so that I couldn't just simply go back and edit it in. Another major reason was that I had a very difficult time with writing in first-person and that quickly became very detrimental to how I like telling stories. I enjoy going into detail about things, so much so that it'd be out of place with that viewpoint. Lastly, and possibly the absolute largest factor, is that fact that I have a future to get in order, I take the SAT very soon and I need to dedicate at least a little bit of time to studying. But fear not, Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation might be getting canceled as it is now, but if things go right I'll pick it back up in the future. I might rework the plot so that it fits with Percy Jackson characters that are present in the story (which is something I don't really want to do as I'd rather use my own characters), or I'll write it my personal style instead of trying to do something I'm not too fond of. When it comes down to it, I was unhappy when I was writing my last chapter, it was garbage and I knew it but I needed something to post. I was unhappy with the way the characters were developing and unhappy with the way the plot tried to unfold. There were certain things that I tried to pull off, but couldn't with the first-person perspective. At the end of the day, it comes to this, Bartholomew Cooperman and the Grimoire of Creation is not going to receive updates anymore but it might come back in one form or another in the future if I can find the time as there are a lot of cool things that I had in mind!


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